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| Staff Writer |
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Copper Tax, who had earned a spot in the Preakness by triumphing in the Federico Tesio Stakes, has decided to skip the second leg of the Triple Crown.
Eleanor Albert, the Maryland Jockey Club's stakes coordinator, confirmed his withdrawal from the race following a social media post by David Grening of the Daily Racing Form. Unfortunately, Trainer Gary Capuano was unavailable for comment.
Capuano told the Preakness media team after the Tesio that the Preakness was a "consideration."
"It wasn't my real goal going in; I was just hoping he ran a perfect race and showed himself again, which he did. He ran tremendously," he said. "We will look and see how things shape up, how he bounces back, and how he trains in the next week or two. We'll look at who might be coming and who might not. We probably won't make any decisions until after the (Kentucky) Derby. We'll let him tell us. It's not out of the question, but it's still a long shot. We'll see how it goes."
Copper Tax's withdrawal reduces the expected Preakness field to nine contenders.
Before the Tesio, Copper Tax, the son of Copper Bullet, triumphed in the Private Terms Stakes at Laurel Park. He boasts a record of 10: 7-1-0.
His winning streak was briefly interrupted by his pursuit of the Kentucky Derby trail, during which he finished sixth in the Grade 2 Remsen in December and 10th in the Sam F. Davis (G3) in February.