LOUISVILLE, Ky. — El Kabeir, who excelled in prep races in New York leading to the Kentucky Derby, may have to be scratched.
Diagnostic tests were being done on El Kabeir on Friday morning, said Justin Zayat, the stable’s racing manager, after trainer John Terranova felt the horse was not quite himself. Zayat said one possibility is that El Kabeir has a bruised inside quarter.
El Kabeir, whose Arabic name translates to “the Boss,” came to prominence this winter when he won the Jerome and Gotham Stakes at Aqueduct Racetrack. He took third in the Wood Memorial at Aqueduct, trailing Derby entrants Frosted and Tencendur, in his most recent start.