Arabian Knight taken out of training, will miss Kentucky Derby
Arabian Knight, undefeated in two races and rated among the leading candidates for the Triple Crown, has been taken out of training, owner Amr Zedan announced in a message on Twitter late Saturday night.
“Trainer Tim Yakteen wasn’t happy with his last work & we feel it’s in Arabian Knight’s best interest not to rush & allow him more time to develop,” the statement read, in part.
The message said that Arabian Knight will be considered for a summer and fall campaign.
By Uncle Mo, Arabian Knight has won two starts by a combined 12 3/4 lengths. The colt won a maiden race at seven furlongs at Keeneland by 7 1/4 lengths last November, and his 3-year-old debut in the Grade 3 Southwest Stakes at 1 1/16 miles by 5 1/2 lengths at Oaklawn Park on Jan. 28.
For those races, Arabian Knight was trained by Bob Baffert. Arabian Knight was part of a group of horses transferred to Yakteen in the final days of February to remain eligible for a potential start in the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs on May 6. They were required to be transferred by Feb. 28 to earn qualifying points for the Kentucky Derby through major stakes in March and April.
Baffert is ineligible to run horses in the Kentucky Derby this year following a suspension issued by Churchill Downs management in 2021. The two-year suspension, which ends this year, was put in place after Medina Spirit had a medication violation following a first-place finish in the 2021 Kentucky Derby. Medina Spirit was trained by Baffert for Zedan.
On Sunday morning, Arabian Knight was sent back to Baffert’s stable on the other side of the Santa Anita backstretch.
Arabian Lion and Hejazi, two other horses recently transferred from Baffert to Yakteen, were returned to Baffert’s stable in recent days and therefore are no longer candidates for the Kentucky Derby.
Arabian Lion was last of four in the Grade 2 Robert Lewis Stakes at 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita on Feb. 4 in his most recent start. Hejazi was fourth of nine in the Grade 2 San Felipe Stakes at 1 1/16 miles at Santa Anita on March 4.
Arabian Knight’s defection from Kentucky Derby consideration comes days after a busy period of workouts for the colt.
Arabian Knight worked six furlongs in 1:13.60 at Santa Anita on Thursday, five days after he worked five furlongs in 59.20 seconds on March 4. Yakteen said on Thursday that Arabian Knight worked twice within a week to avoid a disrupted training scheduled caused by significant rain that hit California on Friday.
Prior to the March 4 workout, Arabian Knight had not worked since Feb. 13.
Yakteen said on Sunday that Arabian Knight had not sustained an injury in recent days.
“After talking with Amr, he’s a super-gifted horse, but we’re up against it,” Yakteen said. “We want to give him a chance to be the best horse he can be.
“We’re under a time constraint, the weather. Look at what we’ve been dealing with. You don’t want to put a square peg in a round hole.
“It’s going to be a fun summer to watch him campaign. I think you’ll see him a lot sooner than you think.”
-additional reporting by Nicole Russo
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