The Green Monkey!

Found this on the DRF site:


Aqueduct | Posted 11/22/2006, 4:39 pm
The Green Monkey won't race in 2006
By DAVID GRENING
OZONE PARK, N.Y. - The Green Monkey, who sold for a world-record $16 million at the Fasig-Tipton 2-year-olds in training auction earlier this year, has been sent to his owner's farm in Kentucky and won't make it to the races until next year.

Trainer Todd Pletcher said The Green Monkey re-aggravated a gluteal muscle that he originally injured during the summer at Saratoga. That injury kept The Green Monkey off the work tab for two months. He resumed breezing on Oct. 3 and recorded four workouts, including a pedestrian five-furlong move in 1:05.36 over Belmont Park's training track. Following that breeze, the decision was made to give the colt some time.

"We sort of ran out of time [to race] at Aqueduct so we're going to point for a Florida campaign," Pletcher said Wednesday. "We'll give him a little bit of time off."

Pletcher said The Green Monkey was sent to Ashford Stud in Versailles, Ky. Ashford is the North American division of Coolmore Stud, which owns the colt. John Magnier heads Coolmore.

The Green Monkey, a son of Forestry, breezed a furlong in 9.80 seconds prior to the sale, and created a huge buzz at that sale when he was the subject of a bidding war between Sheikh Mohammed and Coolmore.
Click to expand...
 
Connections will be very disappointed to have missed out on a 2-y-o campaign with this fellow, a precocious sprint-bred type, this could have been the time when he was at his best, relatively speaking.

Didn't he do the splits or something to get the injury in the first place?
 
The Green Monkey is expected to return to training soon
thegreenmonkey_saratoga_bdl.jpg

From the bloodhorse by Deirdre B. Biles

The Green Monkey shattered the world record for a Thoroughbred sold at public auction when he brought $16 million at the 2006 Fasig-Tipton Florida select sale of 2-year-olds in training at Calder Race Course. But the son of Forestry hasn’t made much news since Irish agent Demi O’Byrne bought him on behalf of Coolmore Stud managing partner John Magnier, Michael Tabor, and Derrick Smith.

The Green Monkey joined the stable of multiple Eclipse Award-winning trainer Todd Pletcher in April, then went to Saratoga in late July. After the colt breezed five furlongs in 1:03 2⁄5 in early August at Saratoga, Pletcher reported the colt had pulled a gluteal muscle. He has not raced yet.

“He is at Ashford Stud (Coolmore’s Kentucky division) recovering from a muscle injury; we’re hoping he’ll go back in training with Todd Pletcher in a few weeks,” said a Coolmore spokesman.

The Green Monkey broke the Thoroughbred price record set by Seattle Dancer, when he was sold for $13.1 million as a yearling to Coolmore associate Robert Sangster at the 1985 Keeneland July select auction. A half-brother to 1977 Horse of the Year and Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew, Seattle Dancer scored in the Windfields Farm Gallinule Stakes (Ire-II) and the Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial Stakes (Ire-II) in 1987. He also finished second in the 1987 Grand Prix de Paris (Fr-I).
 
That must've been some pulled muscle to take eight months to heal! I'm going to venture that the only good deal out of this was for the vendor.
 
The Green Monkey runs for the first time on Saturday at Belmont Park,

Belmont Park - September 15th, 2007 - Race 4
Estimated Local Post Time: 2:33 PM
Race Type: Maiden Special Weight
Breed: Thoroughbred
Age Restriction: Three Year Old and Upward
Purse: $52,000
Distance: Six Furlongs
Surface: Dirt

Post Horse Name Age Sex Weight Jockey Name
1 Sixthirteen (VA) 3 Colt 119 Richard Migliore
2 Bujagali (KY) 3 Colt 119 Eibar Coa
3 Roi Maudit (KY) 3 Colt 119 Kent J. Desormeaux
4 The Green Monkey (FL) 3 Colt 119 John R. Velazquez
5 Holla Bend (FL) 3 Colt 119 Jorge F. Chavez
6 Secret Design (VA) 3 Colt 119 Garrett K. Gomez
 
I think it's just a term to denote it as a 'conditions' maiden, as opposed to a maiden claimer.
 
How good is the average 3yo maiden at the autumn Belmont meeting? In terms of getting a general handle on what we should expect?
 
Maiden Races

There are two types of maiden races: maiden special weight and maiden claiming. The maiden special weight race, also called a maiden allowance, is the highest quality. A horse cannot be claimed out of a maiden special weight race. As a general rule, the maiden special weight races have the best youngest horses on the racetrack and also often some of the best bred horses. The purses are also better than in a maiden claiming race. In maiden claiming races, all the horses are for sale at the price stated in the program. Claiming prices vary from track to track, and can range from $5,000 to $150,000.

More info on the types of races in the US Here
 
A poor turnout for £25 grand, you'd think a maiden race for this sort of money would have a maximum field/be divided.
 
This was the latest I could find, apparently it was faster than all his previous workouts

Horse name The Green Monkey
Notes
Activity type Workout
Activity date 07-22-2007
Track Belmont Park
Surface Dirt
Distance 5 Furlongs
Workout type Breezing
Workout time 0:59.88
Track condition Fast
 
From DRF



The Green Monkey, a son of Forestry, returned to the worktab in June and has worked 11 times this year, including a half-mile move in 47.15 seconds out of the gate last Saturday.

"I think the most important change this year is that the horse is physically very healthy," Pletcher said Thursday by phone from the Keeneland yearling sales. "Any time you have a horse that's had minor aches and pains like he had as 2-year-old - it never allowed him to show his true ability. We've been able to train him accordingly this year because he's been healthy. Because of that, he's gotten better and performed better in the morning."

Pletcher said he understands it will be hard for The Green Monkey to live up to expectations.

"The Green Monkey has been a horse that's highly visible and followed closely," Pletcher said. "It would be difficult for any horse to meet expectations that have been laid on him. At the end of the day, he's ready to run, so we'll get started and hope he runs well."
 
Would say most of the starters in the field (without checking) have had plenty of chances to break their maidens. Surely a last chance saloon before the MCL's beckon for most of them.

A few Virginia-breds, Florida-breds and a Kentucky-bred suggest it's not the best race you'll find at Belmont.
 
Thats really depressing. I remember reading the article after the sale. They would have been better off if he never made the track.
 
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