Afleet Alex retired; stud plans undecided

Afleet Alex made his final career start an easy win in the Belmont S. (Michael J. Marten/Horsephotos.com)

Dual classic winner AFLEET ALEX (Northern Afleet) has been retired from
racing due to a recent injury that may be related to the condylar fracture in
his left front cannon bone that sidelined him in late July. No stud plans have
been announced for the three-year-old, who has not started since a seven-length
victory in the 1 1/2-mile Belmont S. (G1) on June 11. After clipping heels with
Scrappy T (Fit to Fight) and nearly falling at the top of the stretch, Afleet Alex won the
Preakness S. (G1) by 4 3/4 lengths. He finished third, beaten
one length, in the Kentucky Derby (G1). He retires with eight wins from 12
starts and
$2,765,800 in earnings.

Afleet Alex was examined by Dr. Patricia Hogan at the New Jersey Equine
Clinic prior to being shipped to Gulfstream Park, where he is currently stabled.
The injury was discovered when the latest set of xeroradiographs revealed an
abnormal wedge-shaped section of bone abutting the original fracture.

“The wedge is essentially an island of brittle bone that was once badly
bruised, and over time has slowly lost its blood supply,” Hogan told The
Blood-Horse. “As a result, the bone has become brittle and has lost its spongy
characteristics. In medical terms, it is called avascular necrosis. It is in a
location at the bottom of the cannon bone toward the back where it was almost
impossible to see. We talked to Dr. (Larry) Bramlage about it and he said if it
ever healed at all it would have taken months, and I don’t think we’d ever feel
confident radiographically that it would look normal enough for the horse to return
to racing.”