Trainer Kiaran McLaughlin confirmed March 1 that Darley Stable's promising 3-year-old colt Crossbow is off the Kentucky Derby Presented by Yum! Brands (gr. I) trail due to a small bone chip discovered in his right front ankle.
The son of Bernardini out of Forest Heiress (by Forest Wildcat) was scheduled to run March 5 in the Gotham Stakes (gr. III) at Aqueduct after being scratched from the Hutcheson Stakes (gr. II). McLaughlin scratched Crossbow because the colt had drawn the rail in a race full of speed.
"We galloped him a mile and a half the morning of the race, and he looked great on the racetrack," McLaughlin said. "But we noticed there was little bit bit of pressure on his right front ankle that was not there on Wednesday or Thursday. We had a van lined up for Tuesday and Alan Garcia was going to take off his mounts and go up to ride him in the Gotham. When that little pressure was there we didn't want to ship him up to New York and have something happen up there, so we X-rayed it on Sunday and found the chip.
"We sent him to Lexington, and he'll have the chip removed. He's a nice horse, and he'll come back great," he said.
The Gotham would have been Crossbow's first start in a stakes. Bred by Stonerside Stable, the colt is two-for-two this year, with wins in a six-furlong maiden race at Aqueduct and a seven-furlong allowance race at Gulfstream Park.
McLaughlin said that Fasig-Tipton Fountain of Youth (gr. II) winner Soldat came out of the race in great shape.
"I felt he came out of this race better than his allowance race," he said. "He's happy, he's sharp, and he's eating well. Everything is great."
