Trainer Richard Mandella postponed a morning workout scheduled for Beholder at Del Mar following injuries to three horses in separate incidents. The concern immediately turned to the track conditions with several complaints that the track was not in suitable shape for training, let alone racing.
Big Book and Whisky and Wine were injured during timed workouts while six year old Joelito was injured while galloping. Whisky and Wine had to be euthanized due to her injuries. The other two horses had less severe injuries though Big Book was being evaluated for possible tendon surgery. After seeing the early morning carnage and hearing the concern over the track surface trainer Mandella wasn’t about to put his superstar mare Beholder at risk: “I’ve got a stomach ache. She doesn’t, but I do. We’ll do it tomorrow. She’ll gallop today.”
Mandella wasn’t alone in his concern. Experienced jockeys Flavien Prat and Tyler Baze along with trainer Jim Cassidy independently reported their concern about an area near the quarter pole with Prat suggesting that the area was “a little loose”. Cassidy canceled his scheduled workouts for Saturday in the interest of not taking chances with his horses’ safety and well being. Trainers Ron Ellis and John Sadler joined Mandella and Cassidy in calling off their scheduled Saturday works over the same concerns over the conditions of the track and in the interest of their horses’ safety.
Track superintendent Steve Wood Jr. met with track president Joe Harper and other Del Mar executives trying to determine if the injuries were related and if there was an issue with the track. Harper said that they’d give the track a thorough once over during the four hour break between the end of practice and the start of the Saturday racing card at Del Mar: “We’ll have the time to look at it and see if something is happening. I’m always concerned in the first [part] of the meet because [horses] are coming from the different places, and not all tracks are the same. Is it a fluke? Are the injuries different? Are they in the same place? You look at all those factors.”
Although a report was not forthcoming about the track conditions the racing card went on as scheduled for Saturday with no further injuries.