Bob Baffert-trained horse scratched from Kentucky Derby ahead of Hall of Famer's return to Churchill Downs

The tract for the 151st variation of the Kentucky Derby was reduced to 19 by Friday aft 2 horses were scratched with imaginable complications, including 1 colt trained by legendary trainer Bob Baffert. 

Rodriguez, the Wood Memorial winner, was scratched Thursday owed to a bruised ft and volition alternatively beryllium sidelined until the 2nd limb of the Triple Crown, the Preakness Stakes connected May 17. 

Kentucky Derby entrant Rodriguez works retired astatine Churchill Downs connected Thursday, May 1, 2025, successful Louisville, Kentucky.  (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

"Out of an abundance of caution, we person made a precise pugnacious determination to scratch our Derby horse, Rodriguez," Tom Ryan of Starlight Racing, 1 of the colt's aggregate owners, confirmed successful a station connected X.  

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"He has a tiny but somewhat delicate ft bruise that volition request a fewer much days. Therefore, we are resetting our plans and volition people him for the Preakness." 

Rodriguez was 1 of 2 horses trained by Baffert competing successful the Kentucky Derby connected Saturday. The Hall of Fame trainer is returning to Churchill Downs for the archetypal clip since Medina Spirit’s Kentucky Derby triumph successful 2021, a rubric that was aboriginal stripped due to the fact that of a affirmative cause trial resulting successful a three-year suspension for Baffert. 

Trainer Bob Baffert raises the trophy aft winning the 147th moving of the Kentucky Derby with Medina Spirit, his seventh vocation Kentucky Derby win, astatine Churchill Downs connected May 1, 2021, successful Louisville, Kentucky.  (Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

BOB BAFFERT'S KENTUCKY DERBY RETURN: A TIMELINE OF THE SAGA THAT KEPT THE FAMED TRAINER FROM CHURCHILL DOWNS

"It was an honorable mistake," Baffert said successful a sitdown interrogation with "Fox & Friends" connected Friday morning. "The investigating levels are truthful debased present … It was successful an ointment, and we didn’t recognize until astir 48 hours that it was being utilized humanly – helium had a horrible tegument rash." 

"We were warring for the horse," Baffert said of the ineligible conflict that ensued aft Medina Spirit’s rubric was stripped. He said fallout was ne'er implicit a denial of a affirmative cause test. "He earned that win." 

John Velazquez, riding Medina Spirit, crosses the decorativeness enactment to triumph the 147th moving of the Kentucky Derby astatine Churchill Downs successful Louisville, Kentucky, connected May 1, 2021, record photo.  (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)

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Baffert volition inactive person a equine successful the contention arsenic helium pursues a record-breaking seventh triumph astatine the Kentucky Derby – a grounds helium concisely held successful 2021. Citizen Bull, a two-year-old colt, drew the dreaded No. 1 station for Saturday’s race. 

Baeza entered the 20-horse tract successful spot of Rodriguez, but the tract was reduced to 19 aft Grande was besides scratched connected Friday with a cracked heel. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

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