Pure Sensation to skip Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint

ELMONT, N.Y. – Pure Sensation, beaten one length in each of the past two runnings of the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, will not run in that race this year, according to trainer Christophe Clement.

Clement said Pure Sensation did not come out of his third-place finish in the Belmont Turf Sprint Invitational as well as he would have liked, and the 7-year-old gelding will be given time off.

“If I want him to last, I need to look after him,” Clement said.

Clement is still planning to run Disco Partner in the Turf Sprint, provided the turf course is not soft.

Apprentice Martinez injured

Apprentice jockey Joey Martinez broke his jaw when he was thrown by his mount just prior to the post parade of Thursday’s seventh race at Belmont Park.

Martinez, 25, will miss two to four weeks, according to his agent, Jeff Farkash.

“The doctor is thinking of putting a screw in,” Farkash said. “We’re looking at a two-to-four-week time frame. Hopefully, two. Being young and athletic, we’re hoping for a quicker recovery.”

Martinez was aboard Mo Flash. As the horses were coming out of the tunnel and just before walking onto the track, Mo Flash spooked, unseating Martinez, who hit the rail. The fracture is on the right side of Martinez’s face, Farkash said.

Martinez, a seven-pound apprentice with 11 career wins, is enjoying a strong meet, with six wins from 41 mounts. He has ridden two winners apiece for trainers Gary Contessa and Gary Gullo. Four of his wins have come on the last seven cards.

◗ Qurbaan, winner of the Grade 2 Bernard Baruch at Saratoga and the third-place finisher in the Shadwell Turf Mile, worked a half-mile in 48.84 seconds over the Belmont main track Friday in preparation for the Breeders’ Cup Mile. Qurbaan worked in company with the maiden U R Not So Bad.