Castro appears to escape serious injury in Aqueduct spill

Jockey Eddie Castro appeared to escape serious injury after being thrown from his mount, Reading Group, during the running of the eighth race at Aqueduct. Jockey Edgar Prado was also involved in the spill and was uninjured, though he did take off his mount in the last race.

Castro, 24, was taken by ambulance to Jamaica Hospital Medical Center, where he had precautionary X-rays taken on his right shoulder, according to his agent, Mike Gonzalez.

"It looks like he's going to be fine," said Gonzalez, who added that Castro would wait to see how he feels Thursday morning before deciding whether to ride that day's card."

Prado was aboard Aheadofthejoneses when that horse veered out entering the far turn and slammed into his entrymate Reading Group, ridden by Castro. Both horses were owned by Chester and Mary Broman.

Castro was thrown hard to the inner track and it's possible he was clipped by a trailing horse, Doast, who was eventually pulled up by jockey Cornelio Velasquez. Castro was conscious when removed from the track on a stretcher and taken by ambulance to the hospital. Prado was able to walk into an ambulance and was taken to Aqueduct's First-Aid, but released without any reported injuries.

Aheadofthejoneses lay motionless on the ground for several minutes, but ultimately got up and was walked onto the equine ambulance. He was reported to be bleeding from the nose, but it was undetermined whether the bleeding episode was lung-related or head-related.

Neither Reading Group nor Doast was injured.