AP: Barbaro Fighting for his life

Associated Press
Update 13: Barbaro Fighting for his life
By RICHARD ROSENBLATT , 05.20.2006, 08:11 PM

Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro broke down at the start of the Preakness on Saturday, galloping only a few hundred yards when his right rear leg flailed out and he veered sideways while his eight rivals passed him.

The hushed crowd of more than 100,000 at Pimlico Race Course watched as jockey Edgar Prado pulled the powerful colt to a stop and jumped off. With Barbaro still on the track, there wasn't much enthusiasm for the finish, especially with many of the fans in tears.

Bernardini won the $1 million race, beating Sweetnorthernsaint by 5 1-4 lengths.

Barbaro, thought by many to be a serious contender for the Triple Crown if he won the Preakness, was diagnosed with a fracture above and below his ankle. Dr. Larry Bramlage, of the American Association of Equine Practitioners, called it a "life-threatening" injury.

The horrifying scene occurred right in front of the grandstand as the field of nine headed to the first turn. The unbeaten 1-2 favorite was in the middle of the pack when he suddenly dropped back under Prado.

"During the race, he took a bad step and I can't really tell you what happened," Prado said. "I heard a noise about 100 yards into the race and pulled him right up."

The colt was noticeably favoring his right rear leg.

"It's a serious fracture. This will require pretty major surgery," Bramlage said. "Keep your fingers crossed and say a prayer. His career is over. This is very life-threatening.

"Under the best circumstances, we will try to save him as a stallion."

The 1-2 favorite, Barbaro broke through the gate before the official start, but Bramlage said that had nothing to do with the injury. After the colt was led back to the gate, the field broke cleanly.

As soon as his horse broke down, trainer Michael Matz bolted from his seat and ran onto the track where he embraced Prado. The jockey walked over to owner Gretchen Jackson and said, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

She put an arm on his shoulder and said, "You did a great job."

Fans were crying in the grandstand as the strapping 3-year-old was loaded into an equine ambulance and taken away, his injured leg in an inflatable cast.

"You never expect it," Jackson said as she walked back to the barn.

The devastating development drained all the excitement from a Pimlico crowd expecting a victory by Barbaro that would have set the stage for seventh Triple try in the last 10 years.

The Triple talk is over now.

Bernardini took control from pacesetter Like Now and pulled away for his victory. Hemingway's Key was third behind Sweetnorthernsaint, followed by Brother Derek, Greeley's Legacy, Platinum Couple, Like Now and Diabolical.

Ridden by Javier Castellano, Bernardini became the first Preakness winner who didn't run in the Derby since Red Bullet in 2000.

"It's very exciting for everyone, for me especially, to win the Preakness. It's also very, very sad. It's a big disappointment," Castellano said.

Lightly raced, Bernardini was taking a major step up in class in just his fourth career start. The well-bred son of A.P. Indy came into $1 million Preakness off an impressive win in the Withers Stakes at Aqueduct on April 29.

The colt has now won three straight after running fourth in his debut, and earned $650,000 for Darley Stable, operated by Dubai's Sheik Mohammed.

Winning time for the 1 3-16 miles was 1:54.65, off the stakes record of 1:53.40.

Bernardini paid $27.80, $9.40 and $5.80. Sweetnorthernsaint, who finished seventh in the Derby, returned $7.80 and $5. Hemingway's Key paid $8.

Winning trainer Tom Albertrani said he didn't see Barbaro break down.

"I saw Michael run by me and I knew something was wrong," Albertrani said. "You feel very upset when you see something like that."

Barbaro was taken back to his barn, where he was X-rayed, tranquilized and stabilized before being transported to the University of Pennsylvania's New Bolton Center, a veterinary hospital, in Kennett Square, Pa.

Matz and assistant trainer Peter Brette accompanied their horse.

"Barbaro's behaving like the true champion that he is and hopefully he'll get the best care possible and be all right," D.D. Matz, the trainer's wife said.

Bramlage said a human would have to spend six weeks in bed with a comparable fracture, "with a horse that's impossible."

Thoroughbreds have broken down in the past in big races: In the 1993 Preakness, Union City broke down and was euthanized; in the 1999 Belmont Stakes, with Charismatic trying to win the Triple Crown, he was pulled up while finishing third with a fractured ankle; Go For Wand broke down in the stretch of the 1990 Breeders' Cup Distaff and was euthanized; and in 1975, the great Ruffian broke down in a match race with Foolish Pleasure. She was operated on, but was later euthanized.

That is so sad.


The owner must be devasted.

This really sucks. I actually shed a tear after the race. I'm a huge Edgar Prado fan. Poor guy.

This horse should of been scratched following him busting through the barrier. Barbaro no doubt injured himself and then having him race he ends up fracturing his leg. I am sickened by the greed.

I watched the slo-mo replay of him busting through the barrier. His legs buckled because of the strain of all that force hitting the barrier.

Chuck, it really was a no win situation. There probably would have been a riot @ Pimlico if they scratched him. Tough call either way. Just hope he pulls through.

Yep it takes an act of God to get a triple crown contender scratched. Would have had to be a very clear injury for that to happen and it wasn't. You can argue forever whether breaking through the gates led to his eventual injury but unless it was obvious at the time, right away, a scratch is out of the question.

Chuck Sims said:

This horse should of been scratched following him busting through the barrier. I am sickened by the greed.

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I totally agree, should be a fcking investigation into this matter though i doubt there will be. i may never watch another horse race for the rest of my life. sickening to do this to a horse, absolutely sickening!!!! I am curious to see how this plays in the media? any thoughts?

Chuck Sims said:

This horse should of been scratched following him busting through the barrier. Barbaro no doubt injured himself and then having him race he ends up fracturing his leg. I am sickened by the greed.

I watched the slo-mo replay of him busting through the barrier. His legs buckled because of the strain of all that force hitting the barrier.

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The article says he took a bad step ? It`s hard to think that false start had nothing to do with it.

Absolutely. This sickens me. I have no problem with horses racing, but this is deplorable.

IS

i agree with chuck,i could not believe that the vet did not check the horse over before he returned to the gate

Very sad indeed.

The horse would have probebly lived a long healthy life if his destiny was to be dog food instead of a Kentucky Derby winner.

Chuck Sims said:

This horse should of been scratched following him busting through the barrier. Barbaro no doubt injured himself and then having him race he ends up fracturing his leg. I am sickened by the greed.

I watched the slo-mo replay of him busting through the barrier. His legs buckled because of the strain of all that force hitting the barrier.

Click to expand...

I do not agree the horse should have been scratched. I do agree he maybe should have been checked by a Vet. But the horse did not brake thru the gate and run wildly. Not usre he went a a 100 yard or so before the out rider slowed him down..................G.

ESPN REPORT ON WHATS AHEAD FOR THE HORSE

By Bill Finley
Special to ESPN.com


BALTIMORE -- His career certainly over and his life in jeopardy, Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro left Pimlico Race Course with a police escort at 7:18 Saturday evening and was taken to the New Bolton Center of the University of Pennsylvania in Kennett Square, Pa. There, surgeons will perform surgery in an attempt to save his life.

New Bolton is about 75 miles from Pimlico.

According to Dr. Larry Bramlage, the media liaison for the American Association of Equine Practitioners, Barbaro broke his right hind leg in two places. One fracture was above the ankle and the other was below it. He called the injury "life-threatening."

Bramlage refused to predict whether Barbaro would survive the ordeal, but he conceded that the colt has a fight on his hands.

"I can't give you a prognosis; it's a little early," Bramlage said, adding that even if the surgery is successful, "it will be two months before he is out of the woods."

He said there are two major obstacles Barbaro will face in his potential recovery. One, he said, is whether Barbaro lost a significant amount of blood in the area of the injury. The other, he said, is how he comes out of the surgery and whether further damage is caused to the injured area while he is recovering. Horses must have some mobility while recovering from surgery to avoid complications.

"You and I would lie in bed," Bramlage said. "He'll have to walk around."

Dr. Dan Dreyfuss, Barbaro's attending veterinarian, also declined to speculate whether the horse will have to be euthanized.

"That's up to the owners," he said.

Bramlage said the surgeons at New Bolton will have to evaluate Barbaro's condition before they decide when to operate.

"It could be tonight," he said. "It might be tomorrow."

Bramlage said the occurrence of the second fracture is what sets this injury apart from more minor ones.

"Normally, the way it happens is the fracture above the ankle occurs first," he said. "Before [jockey] Edgar [Prado] could pull him up, the second fracture occurred. It's like if you were in a football game and twisted your ankle badly. The problem is, people know enough to stop. He ran on and that caused the second component to the injury."

Barbaro broke through the starting gate prior to the start, but Bramlage did not believe that had anything to do with the injury.

Matz turned to the crowd and gave a brief wave before getting into the car.

Prado told the media Barbaro felt great before the race.

"When he went to the gate, he felt super and I felt like he was in the best condition for this race," he said. "He actually tried to buck me off a couple of times. He was feeling that good. He just touched the front doors of the gate and went right through it. During the race, he took a bad step and I can't really tell you what happened. I heard a noise about 100 yards into the race and pulled him right up."

Kiss1 said:

Very sad indeed.

The horse would have probebly lived a long healthy life if his destiny was to be dog food instead of a Kentucky Derby winner.

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well said sir. his fate is likely to be determined by the total cost for him to recover versus possible stud fees should he survive. truly a sad situation in my eyes.

Barbaro was injured busting through the barrier. I do not believe it was coincidence his right hind leg then shatters shortly after leaving the gate. Bad step my ass.

It would have been a disappointing decision to scratch him but it would have been best for the horse.

Barbaro Update

Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro, who suffered multiple fractures soon after the start of the Preakness Stakes (gr. I), has been taken to the George D. Widener Hospital for Large Animals at the New Bolton Center in Kennett Square, Penn., where it is expected that he will undergo surgery.

His injury is career-ending and life-threatening.

The transport from Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore to Pennsylvania was shown live on WBAL-TV.

The Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) winner stumbled and dropped behind the nine-horse Preakness field before being pulled up by jockey Edgar Prado in front of the clubhouse. Barbaro had broken through the gate before the race officially started.

According to Dr. Larry Bramlage, a prominent equine surgeon with the American Association of Equine Practitioners, Barbaro suffered a condylar fracture of the cannon bone in his right hind leg above the ankle. Below the ankle is a comminuted fracture (meaning it is in pieces) of the first phalanx (long pastern bone) and there is a piece off the sesamoid.

At New Bolton, Dr. Dean Richardson will be in charge, according to Bramlage.

Bramlage added that a major factor in the prognosis will be how much the colt's blood supply has been compromised by the injury.

"When he went to the gate, he was feeling super and I felt like he was in the best condition for this race," Prado said. "He actually tried to buck me off a couple of times. He was feeling that good. He just touched the front of the doors of the gate and went right through it.

"During the race, he took a bad step and I can't really tell you what happened. I heard a noise about 100 yards into the race and pulled him right up."

Gretchen Jackson, who bred and campaigned the colt with her husband Roy Jackson under the Lael Stables banner, said she was still in shock.

"We didn't expect this. You can expect being beaten," she said. "It looked like a bad fracture. We're hoping that they'll operate on him tomorrow. That's as much as we know."

wow that was freakin sad. hope the horse pulls through.

just looked at bloodhorse.com for updates and the way I read it sounds as though they will not be doing the surgery until tomorrow---

"According to Dr. Larry Bramlage, a prominent equine surgeon with the American Association of Equine Practitioners, Barbaro suffered a condylar fracture of the cannon bone in his right hind leg above the ankle. Below the ankle is a comminuted fracture (meaning it is in pieces) of the first phalanx (long pastern bone) and there is a piece off the sesamoid."
"Gretchen Jackson, who bred and campaigned the colt with her husband Roy Jackson under the Lael Stables banner, said she was still in shock.

"We didn't expect this. You can expect being beaten," she said. "It looked like a bad fracture. We're hoping that they'll operate on him tomorrow. That's as much as we know."

Chuck Sims said:

This horse should of been scratched following him busting through the barrier. Barbaro no doubt injured himself and then having him race he ends up fracturing his leg. I am sickened by the greed.

I watched the slo-mo replay of him busting through the barrier. His legs buckled because of the strain of all that force hitting the barrier.

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This is from the Bloodhorse.com...

"Bramlage said Barbaro breaking through the gate before the official start had nothing to do with the injury."

...Larry Bramlage is the prominent vet referenced in Kidslick's post in this thread.

By the way, Barbaro ran without problems for about 100 yds after he prematurely broke through the gate. He was then evaluated and cleared of any injury by the track vet before being re-loaded into the gate, and he ran without problem for the first 100 yds of the race. Both Edgar Prado and Alex Solis said that they heard a cracking noise when the injury happened.

There is no doubt in my mind either that he injured himself busting thru the stalls. I wonder if there could be any litigation.

It surprises me that they pull out the 50/1's at turf paradise when there is a possibility that the horse could have hurt itself yet they let barbaro run.

The Dream of the triple crown was obviously more important than the horses wellbeing.