Two Gulf races canceled

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Thursday's eighth and 10th races at Gulfstream Park were canceled after a section of the inside rail located between the three-eighths and five-sixteenths poles on the main track was damaged during the running of the afternoon's seventh race.

The ninth race, carded on the turf course, went off as scheduled.

The damage occurred after If He Hollers unseated jockey Jorge Chavez leaving the starting gate for the seventh race. If He Hollers followed the field for the opening six furlongs of the about one-mile turf allowance race, then darted suddenly to the outside shortly after entering the second turn, striking the safety rail.

Scott Savin, Gulfstream's president and general manager, said it would have taken approximately two hours to repair the damage to the rail.

"To protect the safety of the horses and jockeys, we canceled the eighth and 10th races," Savin said. "The damage to the rail will be repaired shortly after the last race, and there will be a full 10-race program on Friday."

Chavez walked off the course under his own power but complained of pains in his arms and shoulders and was taken to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood, Fla., for X-rays. If He Hollers was euthanized.

The eighth and 10th races were treated as "alls" in determining the payoffs for the pick three, pick four, and pick six wagers affected by the cancellations.