A movie about the racing career of the champion Thoroughbred filly Ruffian was filmed before Barbaro met his fate. However, Ruffian—as many horse lovers know—met with a similar tragedy. She suffered mortal injury midway through a match race with Kentucky Derby winner Foolish Pleasure in 1975, and was buried at Belmont Park. It was the last match race ever formally held by the Thoroughbred racing industry.
Some would say the film is airing too soon after the sad plight of Barbaro, but the ESPN-produced film starring Sam Shepard is still slated to air on June 7. Current scheduling states that it will air on ABC in conjunction with the network’s coverage of the Belmont Stakes, then on ESPN’s own cable channel. It will be available on DVD shortly after.