Best Minister out of Belmont

Best Minister was not entered on Wednesday in Saturday's $1 million Belmont Stakes after an endoscopic examination revealed the presence of mucous.

Trainer Ken McPeek said that Best Minister, who needed to be supplemented at the cost of $100,000 to run in the Belmont, plus $20,000 in entry and starting fees, didn't finish his Tuesday night dinner and coughed three times on Wednesday morning.

"We figured we would scope him and he didn't scope clean," McPeek said. "Timing is everything in this game and unfortunately this was poor timing."