In the wake of the highly disappointing news that Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist will miss the 148th Belmont Stakes because of an illness, the other 3-year-olds being pointed to the June 11 classic at Belmont Park are continuing unaffected with their preparations.
While Nyquist remained in his stall Wednesday at Pimlico in Baltimore, his Preakness conqueror, Exaggerator, visited the racetrack for the second straight morning.
Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist will miss the Belmont Stakes on June 11 due to an illness, trainer Doug O’Neill told Daily Racing Form Tuesday morning.
O’Neill said that Nyquist has an elevated white blood-cell count and that his temperature, after returning to normal Monday afternoon, was up to 101.2 degrees mid-morning Tuesday. His normal temperature is 100.3, O’Neill said.
O’Neill said that Nyquist would be put on stronger antibiotics to treat the illness and that he would return to California when he’s healthy.
ELMONT, N.Y. – When Kentucky Derby runner-up Exaggerator turned the tables on Nyquist in last Saturday’s Preakness Stakes at Pimlico, it meant that for the first time under the current management team at the New York Racing Association, the Belmont Stakes will be run without a Triple Crown on the line.
Still, NYRA officials believe they have constructed a “must-see” card of racing that will draw interest from fans and bettors alike.
The morning after the Preakness Stakes, trainer Keith Desormeaux needed to look no further than Exaggerator’s pedigree line to express his confidence about the upcoming Belmont Stakes.
“It’s about pedigree,” Desormeaux said. “I can’t do much more in deepening his fitness – it’s there. That mile-and-a-half deal, pedigree is more important than what I’m gonna do in the morning. Pedigree wins the Belmont.
After splitting the first two legs of the Triple Crown, Exaggerator and Nyquist are still pointing to the Belmont Stakes on June 11, but the status of Nyquist became a bit uncertain on Monday when trainer Doug O’Neill revealed that the colt had a high temperature, necessitating a delay in his shipping from Pimlico to Belmont Park.
According to O’Neill, Nyquist had a temperature of “102 and change” on Monday, about two degrees above normal. He was not coughing but did leave some grain, O’Neill said.
Blood work was done, and the results “will tell us a lot,” O’Neill said.
BALTIMORE - Trainer Doug O’Neill was heading back to Southern California on Sunday morning, but a small contingent of his stable - led by Kentucky Derby winner and beaten Preakness favorite Nyquist - were heading to New York on Monday.
Nyquist, who finished third to Exaggerator in Saturday’s sloppy $1.5 million Preakness, was reported to have come out of his third-place finish in good order and will be pointed to the Belmont Stakes and a rematch with Exaggerator on June 11.
BALTIMORE -- Exaggerator and Nyquist, winners of the first two legs of the Triple Crown, both emerged from the Preakness Stakes on Saturday in good order and are set to meet again in the final leg of the Triple Crown, the Belmont Stakes, on June 11, their trainers said Sunday morning.
The Preakness marked their fifth meeting, but it was the first time Exaggerator prevailed. He got a Beyer Speed Figure of 101. Keith Desormeaux, who trains Exaggerator, said he would remain here at Pimlico until next Sunday before heading to Belmont Park.
The $500,000-guaranteed pick four on the Preakness undercard Saturday at Pimlico offers a little bit of everything, from superstars to blue-collar allowance runners. Take everything I’ve written with a grain of salt simply because the weather forecast calls for legitimate rain in the Baltimore area, and it would seem as though the turf events could be in danger of coming off the grass.
ELMONT, N.Y. - Having passed his distance exam Saturday at Belmont Park, Unified will likely be tested around two turns for his next start, though the $1.5 million Belmont Stakes on June 11 is not likely to be that spot, trainer Jimmy Jerkens said Sunday morning.
