Leg injury sidelines pre-Derby favorite

Bellamy Road to miss the final two legs of the Triple Crown.

The Associated Press

NEW YORK -- Bellamy Road, the beaten Kentucky Derby favorite owned by Yankees boss George Steinbrenner, is off the Triple Crown trail with a minor injury to his left front leg.

The injury was discovered Tuesday at Churchill Downs, and will keep Bellamy Road out of training for the next month, trainer Nick Zito told the Web sites of The Daily Racing Form and The Blood-Horse.

Zito, who was in Kentucky on Tuesday, did not immediately return telephone calls for comment. His assistant, Tim Poole, confirmed the injury.

Bellamy Road, who finished seventh behind long-shot winner Giacomo in Saturday's Derby, was under consideration for the Preakness on May 21 before the injury.

The Belmont Stakes, the final leg of the Triple Crown races, is June 11.

The injury is in the area behind the knee, and is caused by too much stress on a bone that results in its outer covering becoming inflamed. In racing parlance, it's called "popping a splint."

"The bad news is he popped a splint," Zito said. "The good news is the X-rays are clean otherwise, there's no fractures so he'll be back for the big races this summer."

Bellamy Road, who won the Wood Memorial by 17 1/2 lengths and matched a 32-year-old track record, may have been developing the problem going into the Derby, Zito said. He added that it probably was aggravated during the race.

"There's no doubt you will see the real Bellamy Road again," Zito said.

Zito sent out five horses in the Derby. He said Andromeda's Hero will likely run next in the Belmont, but High Fly, Noble Causeway and Sun King remained possibilities for the Preakness.