A. P. Indian to miss Belmont Sprint Championship

A. P. Indian, who would have been a major player in next Saturday’s Grade 2 Belmont Sprint Championship, will be forced to skip the race after coming out of his June 17 breeze at the Fair Hill Training Center in Maryland with filling in an ankle, trainer Arnaud Delacour said.

The injury was minor, and A. P. Indian has resumed training.

“He came back with filling in an ankle after his last breeze,” Delacour said. “I sent him to New Bolton to get checked out, and everything looks good. It was a minor setback, but we missed a little time and are going to skip the race.”

Last year, A. P. Indian won six straight stakes for Delacour and the Green Lantern Stable of Richard and Sue Masson. He started his streak in the Decathlon at Monmouth Park and the LeVine Memorial at Parx Racing, then reeled off victories in the Belmont Sprint Championship, the Grade 1 Alfred G. Vanderbilt, the Grade 1 Forgeo, and the Grade 2 Phoenix.

“If everything goes well, we hope to make the Vanderbilt at Saratoga,” Delacour said.

:: Get a jump on the Saratoga meet and save on PPs, wagering strategies, and more

The $350,000 Vanderbilt will be run at six furlongs July 29.

A. P. Indian, 7, has started twice this season, finishing second to Awesome Slew in the Commonwealth at Keeneland and second to Whitmore in the Maryland Sprint at Pimlico.

The defection of A. P. Indian makes Mind Your Biscuits a solid favorite in the $350,000 Sprint Championship. The seven-furlong race is part of the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series and is a Win and You’re In for the BC Sprint.

Mind Your Biscuits will be making his first start since winning the $2 million Golden Shaheen on March 25 in Dubai. Trained by Chad Summers, Mind Your Biscuits worked a visually impressive five furlongs in 58.19 seconds on June 23.

His top challengers include Awesome Slew for Mark Casse and Unified for Jimmy Jerkens. Cadeyrn, Fellowship, and Green Gratto also are expected to start.