Congrats Gal's death overshadows Covfefe's record Miss Preakness run
While the connections of Covfefe celebrated a record-setting victory Friday in the Grade 3, $150,000 Miss Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course, unbeknownst to them the humans behind another 3-year-old filly were in tears.
After Covfefe hit the wire in a track record 1:07.70 for six furlongs, Congrats Gal collapsed. An on-site veterinarian said she was believed to have suffered a heart attack and died on the track.
Congrats Gal was a graded stakes-placed daughter of Congrats trained by Cathal Lynch for owner Charles Biggs. According to the race chart, jockey Trevor McCarthy eased his filly past the wire before she went down.
McCarthy said Congrats Gal "seemed fine" but was breathing heavily. She was laid down and rinsed with cool water before dying.
In a statement, the Stronach Group and Maryland Jockey Club said "commission veterinarians attended to the horse immediately. Our thoughts go out to all of the owners, trainers and connections of Congrats Gal. The Stronach Group is committed to the welfare and safety of horses above all and we are saddened by what happened today."
A necropsy will be performed to determine an official cause of death.
Covfefe, a Brad Cox trainee named for a typo by President Donald Trump, bettered the previous track record of 1:09.00 set on Aug. 18, 1990, by Northern Wolf. The previous Miss Preakness stakes record was 1:10.0, set by Lucky Livi May 18, 2000.
“She did break the track record? It doesn’t matter, but she’s fast," Cox said. "We weren’t hell-bent on getting to the lead today. We were going to let the speed go if there was a lot of it. Javier (Castellano) did a great job of letting her fall into the race. I’m super pleased with her. This filly, we’ve thought she was a superstar from the start."
Improving her record to 2-for-2 on the year, Covfefe turned away an early challenge from Congrats Gal through fractions of 22.24 and 44.43 seconds, straightening for home firmly in command and extending her advantage with every stride in an 8 ½-length romp. It was her third win from four career starts.
Please Flatter Me ran second and Tomlin third in the field of nine.
Cox said he'd look to Saratoga's Test (G1) with Covfefe.