Nyquist Withdraws from 2016 Belmont Stakes: Latest Comments, Reaction

Nyquist will not run in the Belmont Stakes on June 11 following his loss in the Preakness Stakes, which was the first defeat of his career.

According to David Grening of Daily Racing Form, the Kentucky Derby winner was pulled from consideration due to a high white blood cell count.

Trainer Doug O'Neill confirmed the decision to the Lexington Herald-Leader: "His temp is back up a bit. It's like 101 and change. Now we have to get stronger with the antibiotics. We always want to do right by him and the right move is to chill and not even think about a race until he is right. We had him on a real light antibiotic, and that obviously isn't going to cut it for this bug."

It was anticipated that Nyquist would clash with Preakness Stakes winner and Kentucky Derby runner-up Exaggerator at Belmont Park, but that will no longer be the case.

TMZ Sports reported Monday that Nyquist was battling a fever, but assistant trainer Jack Sisterson was confident the colt would be good to go in New York: "Nyquist is going to be fine. ... The plan is to run in the Belmont. These fevers happen sometimes, but not often."

While the circumstances are different this time around since Nyquist dropped the second leg of the Triple Crown, it's not the first time O'Neill has had to hold a top horse out of the Belmont Stakes.

He was forced to do the same with I'll Have Another in 2012 due to a tendon injury, thus ending the horse's Triple Crown hopes.

NBC horse racing announcer Larry Collmus was among those who expressed disappointment in Nyquist missing the Belmont:

Nyquist faded a bit down the stretch in the Preakness, resulting in both Exaggerator and Cherry Wine finishing ahead of him.

Belmont is by far the longest leg of the Triple Crown at 1 1/2 miles. For comparison, the Preakness is 1 3/16 miles, while the Kentucky Derby is 1 1/4 miles.

That added distance makes things far more challenging for the horses, so competing at less than 100 percent is potentially dangerous.

O'Neill and Nyquist's handlers made a difficult decision, but it was likely the right one in terms of ensuring the horse's long-term health.

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