Saturday, July 21, 2012

Union Rags Retired

What a shame. Yesterday, Phyllis Wyeth, the owner of Union Rags announced that her Belmont winner is officially retired. They are actively looking for a stud deal.

"I spoke to Phyllis about two hours ago," said Russell Jones, Wyeth's advisor. "She discussed it with Jamie (her husband) and it was all about the risk factor. This was a time to make the tough decision. The horse is very much in the limelight as far as breeders go at this moment, and they felt like it would be a challenge and a risk to be back in this position next year."

Union Rags had been retired for the rest of the year due to a small lesion detected in the middle of the suspensory tendon last week. It was believed that with rest, the horse would make a complete recovery.

There is a lot of risk in horse racing--that is the nature of the game--and this decision, according to Jones was made to try and minimize that risk.

"There was a lot of risk involved because if they did not get him back to where he is now, it would be at a significant cost," said Jones. "This is all I was told."

The decision, on that level, is understandable, but it is also a shame for the game.

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