Battle Plan injured

The racing future of Battle Plan is in doubt after he emerged from his second-place finish in Saturday's Grade 1 Stephen Foster Handicap at Churchill Downs with a soft tissue injury to his right foreleg, his connections said Monday.

Battle Plan, who was beaten three-quarters of a length by Blame as the favorite in the Stephen Foster, was to be vanned Wednesday from Churchill Downs to Overbrook Farm in Lexington, Ky., for further diagnostic tests, trainer Todd Pletcher said. Overbrook Farm is the owner and breeder of Battle Plan.

"He had some inflammation in his right fore, and we have diagnosed a soft tissue, suspensory issue," Pletcher said Monday from his Belmont Park office. "He'll go to Overbrook for some follow-up diagnostic evaluation, and we'll see whether he's going to come back into training."

Pletcher believes the injury happened during the race in which Battle Plan made all the early pace under Javier Castellano. Pletcher thought at the five-sixteenths pole the horse took a funny step and the "ground broke out from underneath him," Pletcher said. "And late in the race he went back to his left lead."

Battle Plan is a 5-year-old son of Empire Maker out of the champion mare Flanders. Battle Plan has won 4 of 6 races, including the Grade 2 New Orleans Handicap earlier this year. He has earned $373,143.