Somelikeithotbrown injured, no longer under Derby consideration

As of Monday afternoon, Skychai Racing partner Harvey Diamond left Somelikeithotbrown under consideration for the 2019 Kentucky Derby but anticipated his co-owners would "make a rational decision" about the colt's next race.

By the end of the day, however, those plans were put on hold when it was discovered the Big Brown colt suffered a sesamoid chip on his hind end when running fourth in the Blue Grass Stakes (G2). The long term prognosis isn't yet known, but Diamond described himself as "devastated" over the injury.

Somelikeithotbrown looked like a 3-year-old with a bright future on any surface, as he ran a close third in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, won a pair of stakes to open his season on Turfway Park's synthetic, then performed well on the dirt at Keeneland, forced to send from the inside post in a full field.

"I think he ran real well," Diamond said. "I was pleased with his race. He always tries hard and maybe lost a length or so in the stretch from the eighth pole to the wire.

"I think what hurt us the most was the winner, who was obviously the best horse that day, was lapped on us most of the way."

In the end, Somelikeithotbrown wound up 4 1/4 lengths back at the wire after doing the work up front, going in 23.26 and 47.03 to open the 1 1/8-mile race.

Also campaigned by Sand Dollar Stable, the Mike Maker-trained Somelikeithotbrown could make New York's first Turf Triple Series of races at Belmont Park and Saratoga a goal. That is, if the winner of three races from nine starts is able to race again.

"We'll do what's in the horse's best interest," Diamond said.

Leaving the Blue Grass, Somelikeithotbrown's 30 points placed him 22nd on Churchill Downs' Derby leaderboard, just behind Bourbon War and ahead of Anothertwistafate.

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