I Love Giraffes fractures hip in spill; Castellano off weekend mounts
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SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. − Not all of the participants involved in a four-horse spill Friday at Saratoga came out of the race unscathed.
I Love Giraffes, who fell when she clipped heels with a horse to her inside during the running of the Wild Applause Stakes, was diagnosed with a fractured left hip, trainer Chad Summers. The 3-year-old filly will be sidelined four to five months and be re-assessed to see if she can return to racing next year or be retired.
Further, jockey Javier Castellano, who was on another horse involved in the spill, texted that he came out of the race “pretty banged up and sore” and will take off his mounts both Saturday and Sunday in Saratoga. Castellano was taken to Saratoga Hospital after the incident and released Friday night after negatives taken on his back and neck were negative.
Castellano plans to see a doctor at the beginning of the week to get a better idea of when he can return to the saddle. Castellano, who has 5,992 career wins, was named on seven horses on Saturday’s card and six on Sunday. He is named to ride Thursday and agent Kevin Meyocks said he was taking calls Saturday when entries for next Friday’s card were to be drawn.
“I told everybody I can’t promise he’s going to ride, but the intention is to try,” Meyocks said.
In Friday’s Wild Applause Stakes, Castellano was on Paris Carver who fell over I Love Giraffes, who, ridden by Paco Lopez, clipped heels at the top of the stretch with Pillar of Beauty and fell, starting a chain reaction. Castellano landed on his back and was taken off the course on a stretcher. After being checked out at First Aid, Castellano was taken to Saratoga Hospital where X-rays on his back and neck were negative, according to Meyocks.
After I Love Giraffes fell, Lovely Grey, ridden by Dylan Davis, fell over her and Paris Carver and Smexy, ridden by Tyler Gaffalione, also fell. Lovely Grey suffered a few lacerations but was otherwise okay. Smexy came out of the race without a scratch, according to trainer Brendan Walsh. Paris Carver, according to a post on X from trainer Jorge Delgado, was also uninjured.
Davis took off his final two mounts on Friday’s card but returned to the saddle on Saturday. Gaffalione and Lopez rode the remainder of Friday’s card. Lopez won the very next race, the $200,000 Schuylerville Stakes, aboard Harper’s Corner.
Initial reports from the New York Racing Association were that all the horses were okay. Only Lovely Grey, due to her visible lacerations, was vanned off, the other three were walked back to the barn area.
But Summers said Saturday that I Love Giraffes, was injured.
“She got stepped on twice after she went down,” Summers said.
Summers said I Love Giraffes would not undergo surgery and just get four or five months of stall rest.
“All things considered I feel like it could have been worse especially the way she went down, it’s a miracle she survived,” Summers said. “I thought she was in a good spot turning for home, she clipped heels. The stewards said it was incidental contact.”
The Wild Applause was won by To a Flame, a daughter of Justify owned by Bregman Racing trained by Rusty Arnold and ridden by Jose Ortiz.
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