Injured Coneygree a doubt for Cheltenham Gold Cup defense

By foxsports
Published

NEWMARKET, England (AP) Coneygree is a doubt for the defense of the Cheltenham Gold Cup after being ruled out of this month's King George VI Chase because of injury.

British bookmakers have taken the 8-year-old Coneygree out of the betting markets for the Gold Cup, which he won in March at the first attempt.

British media are reporting Coneygree has leg injuries.

Sara Bradstock, the wife of Coneygree's owner Mark Bradstock, says the horse will not run again this year and that his legs ''are a little big fragile.'' She didn't give a timeframe for his return Wednesday.

The King George, one of the highlights of the jumps calendar in Britain, is run on Dec. 26. The Gold Cup is on March 18.