Palace Malice out of Met Mile

By: SPORTS NETWORK

Elmont, NY (SportsNetwork.com) - Reigning Met Mile winner Palace Malice will not be entered to defend his title in the stakes on the Belmont Stakes card.

Owned by Dogwood Stable and and Three Chimneys Farm, Palace Malice has been recovering from a bruised right foot that forced him to miss the Westchester Handicap. The 5-year-old, trained by Todd Pletcher, finished third in the Diablo Stakes at Belmont Park on May 10.

"While his six furlong prep race on May 10 was satisfactory, it was somewhat inconclusive. In addition, his foot problem caused him to miss training days. We are reluctant to go into a power-ladened Met Mile without having had an ideal preparation for it," the owner posted on its website.

"Instead, we will point for the Whitney on August 8 at Saratoga. This is a mile and a quarter race, and we hope to prepare for it with a prep race around the fourth of July and there are several options in the East for such an undertaking."

Palace Malice suffered a bone bruise during the running of last year's Whitney Stakes. A five race campaign had originally been put together for Palace Malice beginning with the Westchester.

"We've always placed emphasis on the latter part of the year and hope the horse can bow out of his career with a big performance in the Breeders' Cup in Lexington in the fall," the ownership group continued.

"He's an important horse - one of the few to ever win both the Belmont Stakes and the Met Mile the following year - and we want to protect his record. Running in the Met Mile on June 6 would not be in his best interest, we feel."

The 5-year-old horse won last year's Gulfstream Park and New Orleans Handicaps along with the Westchester and Met Mile. Palace Malice, winner of the 2013 Belmont Stakes, has seven wins from 18 career starts for $2,686,135.