Imperial Hint struggles to shake bug

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Grade 3 General George winner Imperial Hint’s status for the $2 million Golden Shaheen was in doubt Monday after the horse spiked a fever upon arrival in Dubai last week.

Trainer Luis Carvajal Jr. said Imperial Hint ran a temperature for only one day upon his arrival but appears not to have fully shaken whatever bug hit him.

“He looks really good and is eating good,” Carvajal said Monday. “He has no fever, but his blood shows something abnormal. If his blood is not 100 percent, I will not run. We always put the health of the horse first.”

Carvajal said the plan was to take Imperial Hint to the track Tuesday for his first training session since arriving here. The 4-year-old Imperial Hint, owned by Raymond Mamone, is the star of Carvajal’s small Parx Racing-based stable. He has been Carvajal’s only stakes starter in the last two calendar years and has gotten very good in the last six months. The General George, a career-best performance, was his third straight victory.