Trainer and co-owner David Jacobson announced Tuesday morning that Banishing, the Group 2 Godolphin Mile winner, will skip Friday’s Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup, a 1 ¼ mile race at Belmont Park.
The 6-year-old chestnut Ghostzapper, owned jointly by Sharaf Mohammed Al Hariri and Lawrence Roman, will instead compete in one of two races at Churchill Downs on September 26: either the one-mile Grade 3 Ack Ack Stakes, carrying a $400,000 purse with a $100,000 KTDF bonus, or the nine-furlong Grade 2 Lukas Classic, which offers $500,000 and the same KTDF bonus.
Jacobson explained, “We’re targeting either the Lukas Classic or the Ack Ack. After evaluating the options, we believe it’s better for the horse to race in Kentucky – especially with Forever Young being such a strong contender.”
Banishing boasts earnings exceeding $3.2 million from a career record of 32 starts: 11 wins, 7 seconds, and 3 thirds.
Additionally, trainer Ethan West shared that Chunk of Gold, a Grade 3 winner owned by Terry Stephens, will also forgo the Jockey Club Gold Cup and head straight to the Lukas Classic.
“Due to logistical challenges, it made more sense to stick with our original plan,” West said.
Chunk of Gold, who was purchased for only $2,500 at the 2023 Fasig-Tipton Kentucky Fall Yearling Sale, is close to reaching millionaire status with earnings of $951,511. He is a full sibling to stakes winner Band of Gold and is out of Play for Gold, a Cairo Prince mare who is a half-sister to dual graded stakes winner My Boy Jack.
With Banishing and Chunk of Gold withdrawing, the Jockey Club Gold Cup field shrinks to five horses. The remaining contenders, listed from the inside post, are:
- Baeza (trained by Bill Mott, ridden by Junior Alvarado, odds 9-2)
- Stars and Stripes (Bill Mott, John Velazquez, 15-1)
- Chunk of Gold (SCRATCHED)
- Phileas Fog (Gustavo Rodriguez, Kendrick Carmouche, 4-1)
- Render Judgement (Kenny McPeek, Manny Franco, 20-1)
- Forever Young (Yoshito Yahagi, Ryusei Sakai, 3-5)
This article was originally published by Paulick Report on September 15, 2026, in their News section. You can add Paulick Report as a preferred source by clicking here.
Fan Take: This shift in the lineup highlights how strategic decisions by top trainers can reshape the prestige and competitiveness of marquee races, keeping fans on their toes. For the sport, it underlines the growing importance of race placement and travel logistics in managing elite thoroughbreds’ careers, which might influence how future big races are planned and contested.
Source: sports.yahoo.com
