Owner: Life Is Good ‘out for few months,’ off Ky. Derby trail

After what appeared to be a good workout in preparation for the Santa Anita Derby next month, Kentucky Derby betting favorite Life Is Good suffered a setback and was taken off the Triple Crown trail, the colt’s lead owner said Saturday.

“Out for few months,” WinStar Farm president and CEO Elliott Walden said in a text to Horse Racing Nation. “Off left hind. Going to see Dr. (Larry) Bramlage this week.”

After first hesitating to rule Life Is Good out of the Derby, trainer Bob Baffert confirmed it later Saturday in an off-air conversation with Randy Moss of NBC Sports.

“The plans right now are to fly Life Is Good to Versailles, Ky., to WinStar Farm to have the best veterinarians in Kentucky and check him out to try to get to the source of the problem,” Moss said. “Bob doesn’t think it’s anything too terribly serious, but with all the timing and the flights and everything, this does officially take him off the Derby trail.”

Asked about it by HRN, Baffert texted, “Main thing he will be fine. Timing not good.”

Life Is Good had been clocked going handily over six furlongs in Santa Anita in 1:11.4, the fastest time of the six workouts over the distance. Baffert had been preparing the undefeated Into Mischief colt for next month’s Santa Anita Derby (G1).

With victories in a Del Mar maiden race last fall and in the Sham (G3) and San Felipe (G2) during the Santa Anita winter, Life Is Good was best-priced at 7-2 in Las Vegas and was as short as 5-2 in offshore futures betting for the Kentucky Derby.

The workout Saturday looked routine to Baffert. “He handled everything well,” he told the Santa Anita media team. “He worked perfectly, and I’m very happy with him.”

This marks the third year in a row a short-priced horse in Derby futures has suffered an untimely setback. In 2019 Omaha Beach (7-2) developed a cough and was scratched by trainer Richard Mandella three days before the Derby. Nadal (4-1) and Charlatan (5-1), both from the Baffert stable, were taken off the extended trail eight days apart last spring. Nadal suffered a career-ending condylar fracture, and Charlatan was diagnosed with an ankle injury.