2023 Kentucky Derby favorite Forte scratched

Associated PressMay 6, 2023, 9:44 AM EDT
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The early favorite for the Kentucky Derby was scratched Saturday hours before the race.

Forte was declared out of the 149th Derby, according to Churchill Downs spokesman Darren Rogers. Co-owner Mike Repole said Kentucky Horse Racing Commission veterinarians had concerns about a bruised right front foot.

It was the fifth scratch this week from the $3 million race, the first time that many were scratched since 1936. That year 19 horses were entered and 14 ran.

The colt stumbled on the track during a workout Thursday, although trainer Todd Pletcher had downplayed it.

Five horses have died at Churchill Downs in recent days, including two trained by Saffie Joseph Jr. He was suspended by the track and had his Derby horse, Lord Miles, scratched.

State veterinarians were at Pletcher’s barn early Saturday to observe and examine Forte, who galloped on the track and then jogged outside the barn.

Forte had a five-race winning streak and was the early 3-1 favorite. His jockey, Irad Ortiz Jr., will now ride Cyclone Mischief.

That leaves 18 horses to run in the 1 1/4-mile Derby. The horses will break from posts 1 through 18 in the 20-stall starting gate. Posts 19 and 20 will be empty.

It was another pre-Derby disappointment for Repole.

He owned Uncle Mo, the early favorite for the 2011 Derby who was scratched the day before the race. The colt had a gastrointestinal infection and was eventually diagnosed with a rare liver disease. He resumed racing before retiring in November of that year.

Other horses that were scratched this week were Practical Move and Skinner, both because of fever, and Continuar.

Pletcher, a two-time Derby winner, will still saddle Tapit Trice and Kingsbarns.

It’s not the first time the favorite has been scratched.

In 2019, Omaha Beach missed the race because of an entrapped epiglottis, which affected his breathing. He had surgery and went on to race later that year.

In 2009, I Want Revenge was scratched on Derby day after a soft tissue injury to his left front ankle was discovered that morning.

Churchill Downs said specific wagers placed before the scratch will revert to the post-time favorite. Other wagers will receive consolation payouts. All other advance wagers on Forte, except for the Derby future wager, will be refunded.

Post time for the Derby is shortly before 7 p.m. EDT.

Watch the 149th running of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, May 6 from 12 to 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC. Full coverage is also available on NBCSports.com, the NBC Sports app and Peacock.

Forte works out, waits for Belmont Stakes clearance

Associated PressMay 27, 2023, 3:14 PM EDT
Matt Stone/USA TODAY NETWORK
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NEW YORK — Forte, the early Kentucky Derby favorite who was scratched on the day of the race, worked out in preparation for a possible start in the Belmont Stakes on June 10.

Under regular rider Irad Ortiz Jr., Forte worked five-eighths of a mile for Hall of Fame trainer Todd Pletcher. It was the colt’s second workout since being scratched from the Derby on May 6.

“It seems like he’s maintained his fitness level,” Pletcher said. “It seems like everything is in good order.”

Forte was placed on a mandatory 14-day veterinary list after being scratched from the Derby because of a bruised right front foot. In order to be removed from the list, the colt had to work in front of a state veterinarian and give a blood sample afterward, the results of which take five days.

“There’s protocols in place and we had to adhere to those and we’re happy that everything went smoothly,” Pletcher said. “We felt confident the horse was in good order or we wouldn’t have been out there twice in the last six days, but you still want to make sure everything went smoothly and we’re happy everything did go well.”

Pletcher said Kingsbarns, who finished 14th in the Kentucky Derby, will miss the Belmont. The colt is showing signs of colic, although he is fine, the trainer said.

Another Pletcher-trained horse, Prove Worthy, is under consideration for the Belmont. He also has Tapit Trice, who finished seventh in the Derby, being pointed toward the Belmont.

Judge grants Churchill Downs’ request for summary judgment to dismiss Bob Baffert’s lawsuit

Associated PressMay 25, 2023, 9:36 PM EDT
churchill downs
Abbey Cutrer/USA TODAY NETWORK
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LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A federal judge has granted Churchill Downs’ motion for summary judgment that dismisses Bob Baffert’s claim the track breached due process by suspending the Hall of Fame trainer for two years.

Churchill Downs Inc. suspended Baffert in June 2021 after his now-deceased colt, Medina Spirit, failed a postrace drug test after crossing the finish line first in the 147th Kentucky Derby. The trainer’s request to lift the discipline was denied in February, keeping him out of the Derby for a second consecutive May.

U.S. District Court Judge Rebecca Grady Jennings ruled in a 12-page opinion issued Wednesday that Churchill Downs’ suspension of Baffert did not devalue his Kentucky trainer’s license. It cited his purse winnings exceeding $1 million at Keeneland in Lexington and stated that his argument “amounts to a false analogy that distorts caselaw.”

Jennings denied CDI’s motion to stay discovery as moot.

The decision comes less than a week after Baffert-trained colt National Treasure won the Preakness in his first Triple Crown race in two years. His record eighth win in the second jewel of the Triple Crown came hours after another of his horses, Havnameltdown, was euthanized following an injury at Pimlico.

Churchill Downs said in a statement that it was pleased with the court’s favorable ruling as in Baffert’s other cases.

It added, “While he may choose to file baseless appeals, this completes the seemingly endless, arduous and unnecessary litigation proceedings instigated by Mr. Baffert.”

Baffert’s suspension is scheduled to end on June 2, but the track’s release noted its right to extend it “and will communicate our decision” at its conclusion.