Sovereignty Out of Jockey Club Gold Cup as Belmont Park Reopening Headliner Loses Its Star

Sovereignty, the reigning Horse of the Year and winner of the 2025 Kentucky Derby, Belmont Stakes and Travers, will not run in next Friday’s Grade 1, $1 million Jockey Club Gold Cup that headlines reopening day at Belmont Park, according to a Daily Racing Form report confirmed by trainer Bill Mott.

The 4-year-old Godolphin colt developed an abscess in his left hind foot a little more than a week ago, causing him to miss two scheduled workouts. Mott said he hopes to have Sovereignty back on the track by midweek and will instead aim the colt directly at the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar on Oct. 31 without a prep race.

His absence removes one of the most anticipated matchups of the racing calendar: a clash with Forever Young, the Japan-based winner of the 2025 Breeders’ Cup Classic. Forever Young arrived at Belmont Park on Tuesday, cleared quarantine Thursday and jogged over the venue’s new main track that same morning. Entries for the Gold Cup were set to be drawn Saturday.

The withdrawal is the latest in a string of disruptions for Sovereignty. After a dominant 2025 campaign capped by a runaway Travers victory, he was scratched from the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar after spiking a fever following the ship from Saratoga. His 4-year-old return included a loss to White Abarrio in the Oaklawn Handicap and a third-place finish behind Magnitude and stablemate Baeza in the Stephen Foster. He rebounded in August with a commanding Whitney victory over top filly Nitrogen and a deep older-horse field at Saratoga.

The Gold Cup field took another hit Friday, when the New York Racing Association announced that Money Game, trained by Brad Cox, would also miss the race after a morning breeze at Saratoga’s Oklahoma training track.

Beyond the racetrack, the developments carry relevance for the broader racing business. Belmont Park’s reopening is a marquee event for New York racing, and major stakes cards drive wagering volume across platforms including those operated by Churchill Downs Incorporated, whose TwinSpires betting business sits in the gambling sector. The company’s shares traded at $83.86 on Friday, up 1.34% from a previous close of $82.75, valuing the company at roughly $6.07 billion. Star horses like Sovereignty help anchor betting handles on big race days, making high-profile scratches a factor in the wagering economy that surrounds the sport.

What to watch

• Official Gold Cup entries, to be drawn Saturday, which will confirm the final field without Sovereignty or Money Game.
• Sovereignty’s return to training next week and whether Mott follows through on a direct route to the Breeders’ Cup Classic on Oct. 31.
• Forever Young’s continued acclimation to the Belmont Park main track ahead of his New York debut.

Source: original release