Sprint champion Amazombie dead at 16

Eclipse Award champion sprinter Amazombie, who resided at Old Friends in Georgetown, Ky., was euthanized on Monday due to a fractured ankle. The California-bred son of Northern Afleet was 16.

Amazombie had been retired to Old Friends in 2014 by his trainer and co-owner Bill Spawr and co-owner Thomas Sanford, who continued to support him during his retirement.

“Amazombie was a lot of fun,” Spawr said. “He was so much fun, you just can’t imagine. And, you know, he died doing what he loved to do – run! [Old Friends] did a great job. We appreciated that.”

Racing for four seasons, Amazombie put together a record of 29-12-5-6 and earned $1,920,378. The best of those seasons came in 2011, when the gelding burst onto the scene with his first stakes win, in the Sunshine Millions Sprint at Santa Anita in January. He proceeded to win another restricted event, the Sensational Star Handicap, before stepping up to win the Grade 2 Potrero Grande.

After another stakes win against California-breds, in the Tiznow, Amazombie bulled his way through to cross the line first in the Grade 3 Los Angeles Handicap but was disqualified to third for interference. He rebounded with a strong summer and fall against Grade 1 company in California, finishing third in both the Triple Bend and Bing Crosby and winning the Ancient Title.

The 2011 Breeders' Cup Sprint at Churchill Downs marked Amazombie's first trip outside of California. Racing four wide, he wore down Force Freeze in a long drive to win by a head. The victory secured his divisional Eclipse Award.

Amazombie returned to the track in 2012 as a 6-year-old and added another Grade 1 win in the Bing Crosby, as well as a repeat win in the Potrero Grande. He picked up two additional graded stakes placings.