Fountain of Youth (gr. II) winner Soldat has been given some time off and will possibly return to racing later this year, according to trainer Kiaran McLaughlin July 1.
Soldat, who finished 11th in the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I), was being pointed for the July 16 Virginia Derby (gr. IIT) at Colonial Downs, but hasn’t worked since June 6 at Belmont. Immediate plans call for him to be sent to Lexington.
“His feet were just a little tender and we wanted to stop on him and hopefully have a top horse in the fall or next year,” said McLaughlin of the 3-year-old War Front colt. “There wasn’t anything specifically wrong with him. We just had a gut feeling that he wasn’t doing as well as he was before the Derby.”
Soldat is 3-4-0 from nine starts including a win in the With Anticipation (gr. IIIT) as a juvenile.
