Prat to serve 3-day suspension, will miss Preakness

ELMONT, N.Y. - Flavien Prat, who won three races including two graded stakes Saturday at Belmont Park, will serve a three-day suspension beginning Saturday - Preakness Day - for careless riding with his first mount at the Belmont meet.

On May 1, Prat allowed Sahlabiya to come in during the stretch run of the 1 1/16-mile maiden turf race. By doing so, jockey Jose Ortiz steadied on Mozay, who was behind Sahlabiya and finished fourth. There was a jockey’s objection and a stewards’ inquiry, but the stewards made no change to the order of finish. The stewards occasionally do issue penalties to riders without disqualifying a horse.

Prat will serve the days next Saturday, Sunday, and May 27. Prat is scheduled to ride at Belmont on Thursday and Pimlico on Friday.

By taking his days starting Saturday, it means Prat - who won last year’s Preakness on Rombauer - will not be riding for this year’s Preakness card.

On Saturday’s Belmont card, Prat won the final three races, including the Grade 3 Peter Pan on We the People and the Grade 3 Beuagay on Rougir.

Prat entered Sunday’s card 6 for 19 at the Belmont, where he is riding full time for the first time.

*** All-sources handle on Belmont’s Saturday program was $20,100,642, a 5.7 percent increase over the $19,018,512 handle on last year’s same 11-race program.

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