Two Horses Die in Morning Training Collision at Belmont

Two horses died during training hours at Belmont Park Jan. 8 due to injuries sustained in a collision on the training track, according to the New York Racing Association and a trainer of one of the horses involved. Where's Chris, a 3-year-old son of Twirling Candy who won the Nov. 5 Nashua Stakes, and multiple winner Constitutionlawyer, a 5-year-old son of Constitution who most recently started in the Queens County Stakes, collided near the seven-eighths pole around 7:45 a.m. following the renovation break. Neither exercise rider Shannon Uske on Where's Chris nor Emmanuel Colon on Constitutionlawyer was injured in the accident. Daily Racing Form reported and NYRA confirmed that Uske did ride another horse later in the morning for trainer Richard Dutrow Jr. and got unseated. She was taken to Winthrop Hospital for evaluation. "It was one of those crazy racetrack things," said Ray Handal, the trainer of Constitutionlawyer. "You do everything you can to be safe and certain things are unavoidable." The loss of Constitutionlawyer is the first horse Handal has had die while in his care. Handal was featured in a special report by Tim Sullivan that was published last month in the BloodHorse Daily. In his 10th year as a trainer and after more than 1,500 starts, Handal had not lost a horse during racing, during training, from illness, or in an accident. Sullivan: Some of America's Safest Trainers Share Their Secrets "We exercise a tremendous amount of caution regarding safety, and I like my riders to have a certain skill set. We keep advanced riders and we pay well. All the things you can do to prevent these things from happening, we do," Handal said. "I take a lot of pride in it. You do all those things because stuff like this happens and you try to limit it. "Everybody is shook up. Manny has been riding the horse the past year and a half for me. We are a very family-oriented barn, so everyone is very sad." Where's Chris was raced by Nice Guys Stables and trained by Dutrow. He won two of his four starts last year and finished third in Futurity Stakes during the Belmont at Aqueduct meet. He had earned $149,000. Constitutionlawyer has been raced by various partners since October 2021 but campaigned most recently by West Paces Racing, Brown Road Racing, Adelphi Racing Club, and Shelly and Russell Hume. The gelding won three of seven starts last year and had a career record of 4-1-3 from 18 starts. He had earned $301,255. According to Handal, Colon was jogging Constitutionlawyer with another horse and rider clockwise near the outside rail of the training track when they spotted Where's Chris and Uske coming in their direction riding counterclockwise. Horses that are working typically go counterclockwise and are supposed to be down closer to the inside rail. Handal said his riders moved four or five paths toward the inside rail and hollered for Uske, who appeared to be struggling with Where's Chris, to stay toward the outside. "As she got close, she was struggling and pulling on the left rein to correct. The horse dove to the inside, about 20 yards in front of them," Handal said. Colon and the other rider tried to steer back toward the outside rail, but Constitutionlawyer got struck in the hip behind the saddle by Where's Chris. According to NYRA, its on-site attending veterinarians responded immediately but the severity of Where's Chris's injuries required him to be euthanized on the track. Constitutionlawyer did not fall after being struck and was able to make it back to the barn, but he died within 15 to 20 minutes of returning. "You could tell something was wrong right away. By the time he got back to the barn, he couldn't walk," Handal said. "We were waiting to get an X-ray machine and get it set up to get him over to the Ruffian Clinic across the street but he was dead within a half hour after the accident." Handal said he suspects the collision ruptured a major artery in Constitutionlawyer's hip. Handal remembered Constitutionlawyer as a kind and exceptionally obedient and responsive racehorse. He said he was confident that Colon and his mount did everything they could to avoid the collision but in the end it was nothing more than an accident. "I have horses in my barn that just to get them to do anything is difficult; they want to pull on you and go sideways. (Constitutionlawyer) had such a good attitude. Whatever you wanted him to do, he was receptive to the rider. I know he was listening to whatever Manny wanted him to do. It was just one of those things. This is not a common thing, but I think this is pretty cut and dry." Dutrow could not be reached for comment. Pat McKenna, spokesman for NYRA, said the incident would be investigated by NYRA, the federal Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority, and state regulators. "NYRA, HISA, and the New York State Gaming Commission will closely review the circumstances around this unfortunate accident to ensure the safest possible environment for training at Belmont Park," he said in a statement. "The health and safety of horses and jockeys competing at NYRA tracks is our highest priority and one that stands above all other considerations."