No one is getting a Triple Crown this year.
Kentucky Derby winner-by-disqualification Country House won't be taking on the Preakness Stakes on May 18, his trainer told the Daily Racing Form on Tuesday. The news comes just a day after the owner of Maximum Security, the first horse across the derby finish line, said he'd skip the race as well.
Hall of Famer Bill Mott trained Country House ahead of his Sunday win, and said the horse started seeming sick on Tuesday morning. His "appetite is good" and "he doesn't have a fever," Mott confirmed to the Daily Racing Form, but Country House was still pulled from the training list. "And if he's off the training list, he's off the Preakness list," Mott continued, saying the problem is "probably a little viral thing."
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After Derby favorite Omaha Beach pulled out of Saturday's race, Maximum Security became the favorite to win. And he and jockey Luis Saez did just that, beating second-place finisher Country House by a length and a half. Yet after extensive further review, it was determined that Maximum Security impeded War of Will's progress and he was disqualified, giving Country House the win.
Maximum Security's owner Gary West appealed the decision on Monday, and the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission denied it less than a day later. West then said he'd "file suit in whatever the appropriate court is." He also said Maximum Security wouldn't run in the next leg of the Triple Crown because there's "really no need ... to run a horse back in two weeks."
Editor's note: This article originally misstated the date of the Kentucky Derby. It has since been corrected and we regret the error.
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