Max Player forced to avoid fatally injured horse during drill

ELMONT, N.Y. – A horse suffered a fatal breakdown while working Tuesday morning over the Belmont Park training track, the third training-related fatality in three days and ninth over the training track since May 6.

Bourbon High, a 5-year-old New York-bred mare trained by David Adel, was approaching the eighth pole when she suffered an injury to her right front ankle. She had to be euthanized on track.

About an eighth of a mile behind her was Max Player, the third-place finisher in the Belmont Stakes, who was in the middle of a workout preparing for the Runhappy Travers Stakes on Aug. 8 at Saratoga.

Exercise rider Patrick Ramsey had to maneuver Max Player around the stricken horse before completing a five-furlong workout in 1:03.56.

“We’re right behind him, you can’t pull up on top of him, so you might as well go ahead and breeze to some extent, but it was a mess, just a mess,” Linda Rice, the trainer of Max Player said.

Bourbon High became the third horse in three days to suffer a fatal injury while working out on the training track. On Sunday, Teletype, a 4-year-old filly trained by A.C. Avila, and Yellow Brick Road, a 3-year-old filly trained by John Kimmel, also broke down in the stretch while working over the training track.

Since Jan. 1, there have been 13 fatalities of horses training over the Belmont training track. There have been four fatalities of horses training over the main track since it opened in May. Through Monday, there have been 18,131 timed workouts at Belmont Park in 2020, according to Pat McKenna, spokesman for the New York Racing Association.

Also Sunday, Crater Rim was euthanized after having to be vanned off after finishing last in a New York-bred allowance race on turf. Crater Rim was the fourth racing-related fatality of the 25-day Belmont meet, where there were 2,153 starters in 248 races.

In 2019, NYRA averaged 1.19 fatalities per 1,000 starters, lower than the national average of 1.54, according to the Jockey Club Equine Injury Database. It was the seventh straight year NYRA’s fatality rate was lower the national average.

“NYRA is committed to providing the safest possible environment for racing and training by adopting and implementing the best proven safety practices in consultation with independent experts, veterinarians, horsemen, and regulators,” McKenna said. “The circumstances of every racing or training incident are reviewed by NYRA and the New York State Gaming Commission to inform safety protocols and inform risk mitigation strategies.

“NYRA’s organizational commitment and investment in safety and integrity sets the standard for the sport. While there is always more work to be done to protect horses and riders, NYRA’s efforts in recent years have yielded demonstrable results, including a rate of fatal injury more than 25 percent below the national average.”