True Timber Out of Pegasus World Cup
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Photo: Coglianese Photos/Chelsea Durand
Jockey Kendrick Carmouche shows True Timber some love after their win in the 2020 Cigar Mile Handicap at Aqueduct Racetrack
Cigar Mile Handicap (G1) winner True Timber will bypass the Jan. 23 Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes (G1) at Gulfstream Park after he was "slightly off" after training Jan. 20, trainer Jack Sisterson tweeted.
Entries for the $3 million Pegasus World Cup and other races on the Jan. 23 program at Gulfstream are being taken Wednesday morning, and a post position draw is scheduled at 1:45 p.m. ET.
True Timber, who scored in the Dec. 5 Cigar Mile by 5 1/2 lengths at Aqueduct Racetrack, had been expected to be a mid-priced entry in the 1 1/8-mile race in which Big Ass Fans Breeders' Cup Dirt Mile (G1) winner Knicks Go may start as the favorite. Owned by Calumet Farm, True Timber, a 7-year-old son of Mineshaft , is already a winner of five of 29 races and more than $1.2 million in purses.
"While it appears he might be able to run in the Pegasus, we always prioritize the best interest of the horse and have elected to defer to caution and not compete in the Pegasus," Sisterson wrote in a pair of tweets. "Although it would have been a life-changing experience having a runner in the Pegasus, True Timber gave us the excitement leading up towards the Pegasus. Best of luck to all runners in the Pegasus. We and True Timber will be (rooting) for you!"