John Henry to Skip Arlington Million and Aim for Del Mar Handicap Instead

John Henry, who has twice won the Budweiser-Arlington Million at Arlington Park, will not be running in the race this year, owner Sam Rubin said Tuesday.

Rubin, who brought John Henry out of a nine-month retirement in May, had been pointing for the Million, which will be run on Aug. 31. But since John Henry wasn’t nominated, it would have cost Rubin a supplementary payment of $75,000, due by Thursday, to make the 11-year-old gelding eligible for the race.

“If I had another week or 10 days to make the payment, I probably would have made it,” Rubin said. “But the horse just hasn’t been working fast enough in the mornings to consider him for the race at this time. If I put up the money now, they’d put me in the nut house.”

John Henry, stabled at Del Mar with trainer Ron McAnally, had four recorded workouts this month at Hollywood Park. In the last two, both at a half-mile, he was clocked in :50 and :49 3/5.

“If he had shown us a :47, it might have been worth it to gamble and put up the money for the Million,” Rubin said. “He is completely sound, however, and right now our objective is the Del Mar Handicap (a 1 3/8-mile turf race on Sept. 1). If he can’t make that, I’m leaning toward the race at the Meadowlands.”

Rubin was referring to the Ballantine’s at the New Jersey track on Sept. 5. The last time John Henry ran was in the Ballantine’s in October, 1984. He won the race, increasing his career earnings to $6.5 million, which is still the record. When Rubin announced that he was bringing John Henry out of retirement this year, he also said that any future purses would be donated to charity.