Steve Coburn is understandably miffed that his horse, California Chrome, was unable to lock up the triple crown. However, while most owners would just grumble to themselves and lament the loss behind closed doors, Coburn decided to shoot off about it — which he is now apologizing for.
Coburn, alongside his wife, apologized to Good Morning America for comments he made after the race. He said, “I’m very ashamed of myself, very ashamed. I need to apologize to a lot of people.” He specifically apologized to the team behind Tonalist, the horse who won the Belmont Stakes.
Right after the race, Coburn was upset with the fact that Tonalist didn’t run in either the Kentucky Derby or Preakness. He told the media that this was a cowardly way to win.
“It’s all or nothing because this is not fair to these horses that have been running their guts out.” -California Chrome owner Steve Coburn
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) June 7, 2014
“This is a coward’s way out…Our horse had a target on its back. Everybody else lays out one.” -California Chrome owner Steve Coburn
— New York Daily News (@NYDailyNews) June 7, 2014
Going even further than that, in an interview with a reporter posted by The Blood-Horse, Coburn made some angry analogies about the fairness of racing horses in only one out of the three races.
He said, “That would be like me at 6-2 … playing basketball with a kid in a wheelchair. They haven’t done anything with their horses in the Triple Crown. … You ask yourself, ‘Would it be fair if I played basketball with a child in a wheelchair?'”
The analogy is a little muddy, but his anger is clear as day.