Trainer Baffert recovering from heart attack, expected to be released from ... - Washington Post

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Trainer Baffert recovering from heart attack, expected to be released from ... - Washington Post Mar 27th 2012, 11:45 Bernie Schiappa, co-owner of Game On Dude, called the 59-year-old trainer's condition excellent on Tuesday and said he was already "training from bed" ahead of Saturday's race. He said Baffert was in good spirits, joking with friends and working closely on the preparations for Game on Dude, as well as The Factor, which is running in the $2 million Golden Shaheen. Schiappa said it was likely Baffert will go to the track to check on his horses once he's released. "He would probably come here now," he said. "If he had his way, he would walk out now but they won't let him. He is under really good care and he knows he has to listen. He is handling it well. He is in very good spirits as well." Baffert on Tuesday tweeted "I want to thank my wonderful wife Jill, who convinced me I was having a heart attack and called paramedics." Baffert began feeling ill on Monday and was rushed to the hospital, where he had three stents inserted in two arteries. Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum was alerted and visited Baffert in the hospital. Baffert has trained horses for the Dubai ruler. Schiappa said he expected Baffert will be able to handle the stress of race night. Game On Dude, no stranger to tight finishes, is among the favorites for the 14-horse Dubai World Cup along with So You Think, Royal Delta and a trio of Japanese horses led by Transcend, which finished second last year. "I think Bob can take the stretch call," Schiappa said. "He told me that the doctor will be at his side just in case he keels over. That is Bob's humor as you probably expect. But that is what he said." Game On Dude, runner-up in last year's Breeders' Cup Classic, is co-owned by retired Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees manager Joe Torre. Baffert is a three-time winner of the Kentucky Derby, and has several prospects for the May 5 race. He has also won the Preakness Stakes five times and the Belmont Stakes once. He's saddled seven Breeders' Cup winners. The white-haired Baffert, one of the most recognizable figures in U.S. horse racing, is a three-time Eclipse Award winner as outstanding trainer. ___ Follow Michael Casey on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mcasey1 Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers. Five Filters recommends: Donate to Wikileaks.

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