Noted: July 14
– Trainer Bob Baffert said that the Travers is out of the question for Roman Ruler, but that the colt might run on the Travers Day undercard in the King’s Bishop Stakes, which would have the Dwyer winner starting against Lost in the Fog (New York Daily News).
– The reliably cranky Paul Moran bemoans NYRA’s management and calls for the organization’s end. “The prevailing competency vacuum will remain because no experienced racing executive is likely to accept a position with an organization facing certain doom … This is why NYRA, which in better times would have no difficulty attracting the best and the brightest, is being steered by the inept and the clueless and kept afloat by middle management holdovers still too young to retire … It appears that the logical way to save the sport from those currently in charge and avert the decimation of the state’s breeding industry is for Albany to adopt the recommendations made repeatedly over the years.” The most recent recommendations from Friends of New York Racing call for a for-profit entity to manage the state’s racetracks (Newsday).
– Churchill Downs officials told Kentucky state legislators on Wednesday that this spring’s disease outbreaks cost the track $70,000 plus an unknown amount of lost handle (New York Times) … At the same meeting, state veterinarian Dr. Robert Stout said that it was impossible to determine the origin of the strangles cases (Blood-Horse).
