Hall of Fame and Kentucky Derby winning trainer Bob Baffert is resting comfortably in the intensive care unit of City Hospital in Dubai Monday night after suffering a heart attack shortly after 3 AM. Baffert, his wife and son arrived in Dubai Sunday afternoon to prepare Game On Dude and The Factor for engagements in the Dubai World Cup program. Baffert, 59, underwent surgery to have coronary stents placed in blocked arteries early Monday morning.

According to his wife, Bob Baffert did not feel well and had mild chest pains after arriving in Dubai at 2 PM Sunday afternoon on a direct flight from Los Angeles. Baffert checked into his hotel and then went to Meydan to see his horses. He complained about being extremely tired but blamed it on the long flight, Jill Baffert said.

The Bafferts, along with son Bode, had dinner in their hotel room Sunday night, and then the trainer was awakened at about 3 AM after receiving several congratulatory messages when a filly he trains, Princess Arabella, won the Sunland Oaks in New Mexico. He watched the post parade for the Sunland Derby, where he had Castaway running, then again complained of pains in his chest and arms. His condition quickly worsened, and his wife called paramedics. Baffert was taken to City Hospital by ambulance.

Baffert, 59, underwent surgery to have three coronary stents placed in blocked arteries early Monday morning. When Sheikh Mohammed, the ruler of Dubai and the host for the World Cup, learned of Baffert’s condition, he contacted the hospital and got Dubai’s Minister of Health, Dr. Hanif Hassan Ali Al Qassim, involved. Dr. Ali arranged for the surgeons who operated on Baffert, and both Sheikh Mohammed and Dr. Ali were in constant contact during the operation.

Jill Baffert said her husband never lost consciousness. “In fact, he talked to Tim (Yakteen) to be sure to back Game On Dude up to the five-eighths pole and work him a half-mile and also be sure to work The Factor. He was still training his horses going into surgery.”

The surgeons said everything went well, according to Jill Baffert. “He finally got some sleep and woke up feeling much better today,” she said by telephone from Dubai at 9 PM Monday. Baffert will be kept in the ICU until at least Thursday and remain hospitalized until after the World Cup. “We’re going to be here a little longer than anticipated,” she said.