Unsafe, muddy course forces cancellation at Albuquerque

The Saturday night card at Albuquerque, including the $200,000 Downs at Albuquerque Handicap, was called off after one race when the waterlogged dirt course was declared by jockeys to be too dangerous.

“It rained a lot last night and today,” track president Don Cook said. “It got a little too wet. So we canceled. We sealed and thought it was too slick, so we’ll come back tomorrow.”

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Lucky Shot Annie stumbled in the last 300 yards and was eased in the opener, a five-furlong race for maiden 2-year-old fillies. Cook said no one was hurt, but that served as a warning a little more than an hour after his team had spoken to jockeys about the muddy main track.

“We talked to them at about 5 o’clock (MDT),” he said. “We knew it was pretty slick. We told them we were going to run on a sealed track the first race. ... Once they started (expressing concerns) about it, I don’t press the issue very much. ... They took the vote, and the majority didn’t want to ride. That’s all I needed to hear.”

Cook said the Downs at Albuquerque Handicap was rescheduled for closing day next Sunday afternoon and will not be redrawn. He expected at least six of the seven entrants to keep their place with Truth Seeker, 8-1 on the morning line, the only possible defection.

Racing at Albuquerque is scheduled to resume Sunday at 3:30 p.m. EDT with nine races, including two quarter-horse stakes worth $75,000 and $100,000. A breezy, partly sunny day is forecast with a 50 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms.