May 23--Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist has developed a slight fever and was not shipped to New York on Monday to prepare for the Belmont Stakes.
"I think he has some sort of virus we need to get under control," Dennis O'Neill, brother of trainer Doug, told Ron Mitchell of BloodHorse. "He ate well but his temperature was 102 so we decided not to ship. We drew some blood and will know more tomorrow."
The average temperature of a horse is between 99 and 101.
Doug O'Neill had planned to send Nyquist north for the "rubber match" with Exaggerator, winner of the Preakness Stakes on Saturday.
The pair has met five times, with Nyquist winning four of them. Saturday was his first lifetime loss.
It's too early to know if this jeopardizes the colt going to New York. He will stay at Pimlico until a determination is made.
The Belmont Stakes, the third leg of the Triple Crown, will be run June 11.
john.cherwa@latimes.com
Twitter: @jcherwa
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