There will be only 19 horses in the starting gates at the 139th running of the Kentucky Derby, as Black Onyx was scratched from the field Friday due to a bone chip in his left ankle.
Kentucky Derby 2013: Black Onyx scratched, 19 horses running
Longshot Black Onyx was scratched from the Kentucky Derby Friday, leaving only 19 horses in the field.
Rob Carr
'This is serious sh-t'
At age 50, and after seven years away from racing, one of the greatest jockeys ever goes for a fourth Kentucky Derby win. The horse, trained by Kelly Breen and owned by Sterling Racing, had swelling in his ankle Friday after appearing fine in training. He was taken for x-rays which revealed the chip. The horse will be okay in the longterm, but won’t be able to run on Saturday. The colt was a major longshot, with 50-1 odds after winning the Spiral Stakes. He was set to start out of the first post position, the winningest position in the derby’s history with 12 competitors taking the roses. No horse has won from that spot since 1986, though. The closest position to the rails will remain empty for the race.
Normally, an alternate horse would be called in, but due to the short notice, there wasn’t enough time. Fear The Kitten was 21st in the points standings that were used this year to decide the field and would have been next in line, but the horse’s team wasn’t able to get the colt ready in time.
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