Mage is out of Breeders’ Cup with reported fever, will race at 4

Kentucky Derby winner Mage, who had been training up to the Breeders’ Cup Classic in the two months since his last-place disappointment in the Grade 1 Travers, is out of Saturday’s $6 million race after his connections said Sunday he spiked a fever.

“We are sorry to announce that we have decided to cancel Mage’s trip to California,” trainer Gustavo Delgado said in a written statement on X, formerly Twitter. “He presented a feverish state this morning, and we have noticed symptoms of loss (sic) appetite. Given the proximity to the race, we feel that it is best for the horse to skip the Classic.”

One of the ownership partners said the 3-year-old Good Magic colt would race in 2024 with an immediate target of the $3 million Pegasus World Cup Invitational (G1) in January at Gulfstream Park.

“Onwards to the Pegasus and his (4-year-old) campaign,” Ramiro Restrepo wrote in a separate post on X. Restrepo owns Mage with Gustavo Delgado Jr.’s OGMA Investments, Sam Herzberg’s Sterling Racing and Brian Doxtater and Case Chamberlin’s Commonwealth.

“We will update you on upcoming racing plans once things are completely back to normal,” Delgado’s X post said.

On a steady diet of weekly breezes for the last four weeks, Mage would have been due for another workout Sunday morning at The Thoroughbred Center in Lexington, Ky., before he would have been flown Monday to California for Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita.

“We were very enthusiastic about the condition that the horse was going through,” Delgado’s statement said, “and despite how disappointed we feel right now, we are confident in a speedy recovery.”

Bought last year for $290,000, Mage has a racing record of 7: 2-2-1 with earnings of $2,507,450. Since his 15-1 Derby triumph, he finished third in the Preakness and second in the Haskell (G1) at Monmouth Park before he tired in the Travers at Saratoga.

Mage was 12-1 on Sunday in international futures betting for the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Belmont and Travers winner Arcangelo was showing as the 3-1 favorite.