Cox not focused on Derby drama
Trainer prepping Mandaloun for another shot at Grade I glory
It’s probably going to be a while before horse racing officials in Kentucky decide whether to disqualify Derby winner Medina Spirit for testing positive for the presence of an anti-inflammatory steroid after the race.
There will be hearings, testimony and probably appeals before the state commission decides what to do about the Bob Baffert-trained colt.
For now, trainer Brad Cox waits to hear whether Mandaloun, the runner-up in the opening jewel of the Triple Crown, will be declared the winner.
Mandaloun may win his first Grade I stakes in the meantime. The 3-year-old son of Into Mischief could enter those ranks Saturday when he takes on six rivals in the $1 million Haskell Stakes at Monmouth Park.
The 11⁄8-mile race features the runners-up of all three Triple Crown events. Hot Rod Charlie, second in the Belmont, and Midnight Bourbon, runner-up in the Preakness, are entered in the track’s signature race.
Cox is loaded with top 3-yearolds this year. He also trains Essential Quality, who finished fourth in the Kentucky Derby but rebounded to win the Belmont last month.
Essential Quality is slated to run in the Jim Dandy at Saratoga on July 31.
Cox has high hopes for Mandaloun, the Juddmonte Farmsowned-and-bred colt who overcame a slow start to win the Pegasus at Monmouth in June.
“For him to accomplish what he has to date is amazing,” Cox said earlier this week of Mandaloun, who has won four of seven career starts and again will be ridden by Florent Geroux. “But there’s definitely more hurdles to jump and we definitely think he’s capable of doing it.”
Winning a Grade I would allow the colt to stand stud at Juddmonte, Cox said.