Quality Road wont run..
 

Now confirmed..

:( Bummer....


Best interest for the horse though. Too bad... I really thought he was the "one" this year.

whatever is best for the horse, stinks because I was leaning against.

i'm not surprised. the only thing surprising is that it has taken this long to declare him out of the race.

I agree with you, after the second Q-crack on the front that should have been it. How could anyone have confidence in betting on this horse with all the Question marks, and would be an injustice to race fans on Saturday who were not paying attention. If a horse is not 110% then he should be scratch, to many horses in this race for one to pull up causing trouble.

Will it still be a 20 horse field since they didn't have the post draw yet, or has the deadline for registration (or invitation) already passed?

probably-draw is mid week, it's only after the draw that no one else can get in.

my main thought is that since it's the derby, presumably the toughest race of the year for a 3 yo, that you must be in top form. running a horse less than at his best isn't fair to the horse. and yes, since it's the derby, everyone pushes harder to get in-but the prestige of the race itself shouldn't push people to do something they normally would not. also, having a horse not at its best-just where do you expect to finish in the race if you run it? better to skip and wonder, than run and regret it.

It really is a shame, I was looking forward to his KY Derby run. However, the good news is, he is being very well managed and we have a chance to see him later in the year.

Is Patena in yet?

Too bad the best horse won't be in the Derby, but he'll regroup and kick butt soon!

I'll bet JV rides Mr. Hot Stuff now, hey it beats sitting in the room.

Really disappointed, but give credit to the connections for doing the right thing (even though I had a 50-1 future on him from Wynn).
Hopefully they get it straightened out and he's a force for the rest of the year.

And...

could there be a more ironic name than "join in the dance", who now moves into the 20th spot?
:)

Already put $100 on him to win

if they run Join in the Dance, this Pletcher horse will actually help Dunkirk's chances by adding to the pace.

This Derby doesn't seem to have the early pace as other recent Derby's have. ( no Old Fashioned, no Pamplemousse, no Quality Road )

At least I can proceed with handicapping the race. I would have picked QR before the injury, and even at less than 100% he was a pace factor. The other guys near the front look that much better now.

Definitely have to see how the track is playing, but with Regal Ransom and this Join in the Dance fellow on the front end, I think the pace should at least be honest for the 6f or so Join in the Dance will go before he stops.

I feel bad for the connections, but I applaud the decision, you gotta do what is right for horse and it sounds like they made the best decision.