The June 27 Stephen Foster Stakes (G1) at Churchill Downs had a change in its race complexion June 24 as Forged Steel and Navajo Warrior will both scratch, according to Forged Steel's co-owner and Navajo Warrior's racing manager Mark Cornett.
Both horses are trained by Saffie Joseph Jr., who also has multiple grade 1 winner White Abarrio entered as one of the Foster's "Big Four," which also includes reigning Horse of the Year Sovereignty and grade 1 winners Magnitude and Baeza. Forged Steel is co-owned by Mathis Stables and C2 Racing Stable—the latter of which also co-owns White Abarrio—while Navajo Warrior races for BAG Racing Stables, Miller Racing, Dr. Derek Paul, Mathis Stable, Paul Braverman, and Timothy Pinch.
Cornett said that both graded stakes winners will reroute to their original plans after seeing that none of the race favorites had defected by Wednesday morning. For Forged Steel, that will be a July 4 start in the $500,000 Suburban Stakes (G2) at Saratoga Race Course. Navajo Warrior will wait until July 11 to run in the $300,000 Prairie Meadows Cornhusker Handicap (G3) in Iowa.
"We entered these horses to check the races, both Navajo Warrior and Forged Steel, because in this business, anything can happen," Cornett said. "It looks like the 'Big Four' are all going to run, so we're gonna go ahead and scratch both of them."
Although they would have been longshots Saturday, Forged Steel and Navajo Warrior both could have played an important role in the race setup as forwardly placed horses that could have been in contention for the role of early leader. That is why Cornett, an avid handicapper and race bettor, said it was important to inform the wagering public of this decision earlier rather than later.
"We want to go ahead and announce that now as a courtesy to the bettors and the gamblers out there," Cornett said. "We want to go ahead and notify everybody because these two horses both have an impact on the race flow; it's going to change a lot of people's handicapping. As a courtesy to them, we're going to go ahead and put that out there now that neither one of them will be running."
Meanwhile, their stablemate White Abarrio is thriving ahead of the Foster. Arriving June 22 in Louisville, Ky., the 7-year-old son of Race Day jogged on the track June 23. Cornett was on hand Wednesday morning to watch as White Abarrio put in his first gallop over the surface and believes the veteran runner is entering the race even better than he did the April 18 Oaklawn Handicap (G2), where he defeated Sovereignty by 2 lengths.
"He's giving us all the right signs—everything he did going into Oaklawn, only better. We feel better about it," Cornett said. "He's happy, and we're very happy where he's at right now."
