The racing career of veteran sprinter Binthebest ended Thursday when the 6-year-old gelding fractured a sesamoid during a workout at Churchill Downs.
He had breezed four furlongs in :48.80, but the injury was discovered after the work.
Trainer Carl Nafzger said the injury is not life-threatening and that Binthebest, who is owned by James Tafel and several partners, would most likely have a new career on the racetrack when he completes his recovery.
"He's going to end up being a really a nice saddle horse either for us or for one of the owners," he said. "He's not going to be sold. He's a great horse and has a great disposition."
Binthebest ended his career with a record of 5-5-5 in 28 races and he earned $350,545. He did his finest running at Churchill Downs, where he had a record of 4-2-3 in 10 races that included a sixth-place finish to Aldebaran in the Churchill Downs Handicap (gr. II) in the final race of his career. Nafzger said Binthebest's finest hour came in the same race in 2002, when he finished a flying third and was beaten just over a neck by Snow Ridge and D'Wildcat.
"One more jump and he was a head in front," Nafzger said. "He's the kind of horse that every owner just loves. When things went right, 'Bin' was right there, no matter what."