Spurious Precision, the undefeated winner of last month's Saratoga Special Stakes (gr. II), was euthanized the morning of Sept. 18. The 2-year-old son of High Cotton suffered a fractured left knee during a workout at Aqueduct Racetrack a day earlier while preparing for the Oct. 6 Champagne Stakes (gr. I).
Preliminary diagnosis indicated the injury might be repaired surgically, and the colt, owned by Klaravich Stables and William H. Lawrence, was sent to the Hogan Equine Clinic in Cream Ridge, N.J. Additional X-rays revealed extensive damage to the bone structure of the knee.
Exercise rider Rodney Payne was aboard Spurious Precision for the final work at one mile, which was timed in 1:43.66.
"He went a mile Monday and he looked super," trainer Rick Violette Jr. said. "But Rodney felt his stride change as they finished the work, and he pulled him up right away. The horse ambulance brought him back to the barn, and after looking at the initial X-rays, there was some hope that surgery was an option. We sent him down to Dr. Patricia Hogan, but the comprehensive set of X-rays taken at the clinic showed that, in addition to a slab fracture, he had significant damage that could not be repaired."
According to Dr. Hogan, "Spurious Precision sustained a severely comminuted fracture of his left knee. Unfortunately, he shattered the two major weight-bearing bones of his knee, as well as incurring several other smaller fractures of the lesser-supporting bones, thus rendering the knee unstable and unable to support his frame. Heroic surgical measures were considered, but humane euthanasia was ultimately the only appropriate option for this type of injury."
Bred in Florida by Michael Chamberlain out of the Scarlet Ibis mare Scarlet Combo, Spurious Precision was purchased for $105,000 from the 2012 Ocala Breeders' Sales Co. April sale of 2-year-olds in training. He made his debut at Saratoga Race Course July 21 and graduated by 3 1/2 lengths, then added a five-length score in the Aug. 12 Saratoga Special. He earned $168,000 in two starts.
