St. George Stables' Letruska, champion older dirt female of 2021, will be rested and will not run in the Nov. 5 Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Sprint (G1) at Keeneland, trainer Fausto Gutierrez told FanDuel TV's Joaquin Jaime Oct. 31.
"She needs some days off after all this time to run, and we need to recognize when you are not going to arrive in the best form," Gutierrez told Jaime. "It is better to take time. She has run five years in a row. She is OK. She is in condition, but we have decided to skip this risk."
Gutierrez said Letruska would get 60 days off before a decision would be made on whether she will be retired from racing.
The homebred 6-year-old Super Saver mare was coming off a fourth-place finish in the Oct. 9 Juddmonte Spinster Stakes (G1) at the Lexington track, and has not won since her April 23 Apple Blossom Handicap (G1) title defense at Oaklawn Park. Letruska has won five grade 1 stakes among her 19 career wins, with earnings of more than $3 million.
Trainer Fausto Gutierrez just told me Eclipse Award winner Letruska needs 60 days off and will not run in the @BreedersCup this year. Decision on retirement TBD.
— Joaquin Jaime (@JoaquinJaime_) October 31, 2022
Also withdrawn from Breeders' Cup consideration Monday was two-time grade 1 winner Jack Christopher , who was not entered in the Qatar Racing Breeders' Cup Sprint (G1). According to Daily Racing Form's David Grening, who first reported the news, the colt's connections were concerned he would be scratched before race day by Breeders' Cup veterinarians based on how he moves in his training, according to trainer Chad Brown.
Jack Christopher was scratched from the 2021 Breeders' Cup Juvenile (G1), for which he was the morning-line favorite, by on-site veterinarians. He was later diagnosed with a stress fracture to his left shin and underwent surgery, which was done by Dr. Larry Bramlage of Rood & Riddle.
Brown told Grening that recent radiographs of Jack Christopher were inspected by Bramlage, and "no fractures or areas of concern were found by him," but that he felt it best for all parties involved to pre-emptively decide not to enter instead of having the horse scratched later in the week.
Bradley Weisbord, racing manager for majority owner Jim Bakke, told BloodHorse a decision on the racing future of the colt will be made in a few days. Bakke owns Jack Christopher in partnership with Gerald Isbister, Peter Brant, and Coolmore, the latter of which has acquired breeding rights to Jack Christopher, a son of their stallion Munnings . Weisbord declined to go into depth regarding Jack Christopher's physical condition.
"It's now been two championship-caliber seasons that the horse has put forth and to miss the Breeders' Cup both years is heartbreaking," he said. "For Mr. Bakke and the other owners, it's a big blow. It's almost Groundhog Day. For us the horse has done no wrong, but we'll digest what happened in the next 48 hours and come up with a game plan."
Jack Christopher broke his maiden at first asking and won the 2021 Champagne Stakes (G1) before the shin injury ended his juvenile season. He returned with victories in the Pat Day Mile Presented by LG&E and KU (G2) and the Woody Stephens Stakes Presented by Mohegan Sun (G1), then ran third in the TVG.com Haskell Stakes (G1) before turning back to sprinting in the H. Allen Jerkens Memorial Stakes (G1) last out Aug. 27 at Saratoga Race Course.
