Saratoga: Fatal spill mars the finish of the Saranac Stakes

West Hollywood’s win Thursday in the Grade 3, $175,000 Saranac Stakes at Saratoga was marred by a two-horse spill that proved fatal to the 3-year-old colt who was leading the race in the deep stretch.

The Big Torpedo, owned by Thomas Albrecht, Vincent Fusaro and James Klein and trained by Tom Morley, was racing near the rail inside the last furlong of the 1 1/16-mile race on the firm turf course. He then veered out before his left-front leg buckled with about a sixteenth to go, tossing jockey Eric Cancel in the fall that also collected rail-running Take Me To Church and jockey Javier Castellano.

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Take Me To Church ran loose before he was collared by an outrider.

“The Big Torpedo sustained a catastrophic left-front injury and was euthanized on track,” New York Racing Association spokesperson Keith McCalmont said on X, citing the veterinary-department director. “Take Me To Church sustained minor cuts and scrapes and was transported home via equine ambulance.”

Take Me To Church was subsequently photographed by owner Staton Flurry. The colt was being given a bath back at his barn and “seems OK,” according to what Flurry posted on X. 

Cancel got up on his own and was in and out of the Saratoga first-aid center. Castellano was taken to Albany Medical Center “for an injury to his right wrist,” according to NYRA spokesperson Pat McKenna. “Castellano is awake, alert and moving all extremities.”

According to the New York State Gaming Commission’s database on equine breakdowns, deaths, injuries and incidents, Big Torpedo was the first horse to die in a race this summer at Saratoga. Since July 1, there have been two training fatalities. One other horse was found dead in his stall. There were 14 horse deaths last summer at Saratoga.

The Big Torpedo was a Big Brown colt who graduated from a pair of restricted-stakes wins in New York. He was 9: 3-3-1 with $320,900 in earnings.

Take Me To Church, who was bought by Flurry at a sale in Europe this year for $380,600, made his U.S. debut in the Saranac. Brad Cox took over training the 3-year-old Churchill colt who won two allowance races and a handicap in his native Ireland.

West Hollywood, also trained by Cox, inherited the lead after the spill and gave jockey Flavien Prat a record-breaking 16th stakes win during this Saratoga meet. The Uncle Mo colt owned by Qatar Racing paid $4.70, $3.10 and $2.50. Yo Daddy finished second, 5 1/2 lengths behind, and returned $4.50 and $3.10. The Process came in third and paid $3.50 to show. Villain was the one remaining finisher.

West Hollywood made his stakes debut off a local optional-claiming win July 27. He stalked the pace in last up the backstretch as The Big Torpedo marked splits of 24.73, 48.88 and 1:12.50. West Hollywood the was given his cue widest of all in the final turn to draw off down the center of the course and cross the wire first with a final time of 1:40.89. The dark bay returned $4.70 on a $2 win wager as the 6-5 post-time favorite.

Prat took hold of the record for most stakes wins by a jockey in a single Saratoga meet, eclipsing the mark of 15 previously shared by Irad Ortiz Jr. in 2022, Joel Rosario also in 2022 and John Velázquez in 2005, according to statistics provided by Equibase.

The win also provided Prat with his 12th graded-stakes victory of the meet, equaling the record set by Rosario in 2022.

Prat only could extend his sympathies to the connections of The Big Torpedo.

“All my thoughts are for the connections, the riders and obviously the horses as well,” Prat said. “I wish it would’ve been different. Our horse ran his race. He ran a good race. That’s all.”