Skippylongstocking (Exaggerator) will be scratched from Saturday's GI Santa Anita Handicap after he acted up and had to be removed from an airplane in Florida Tuesday morning as his flight to California was preparing to take off.
Mike Welsch of Daily Racing Form previously reported the story, quoting trainer Saffie Joseph, Jr.
“We could have tranquilized him,” Joseph told Welsch. “But with the medication regulations I didn't want to take that chance just four days before the race. He's never done anything like this before, so I'm not sure if it's an indication there is a problem of some sort.”
Welsch reported that Joseph said, “physically, he appears to be fine.”
Joseph told Welsch that Skippylongstocking, who most recently won the GI Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes, will return to his training base at Palm Meadows. Future race plans for the 7-year-old are undecided.
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