$16M Horse Makes Shaky Debut

The world's most expensive racehorse finished third in his rookie race at Belmont Park yesterday. The Green Monkey, really a horse that sold for $16 million at Saratoga's auction last year, had been kept off the track for months by a series of injuries, the AP reports. "In a perfect world, he would win," said the Green Monkey's trainer.

His first start was a six-furlong maiden race, buried in the day's schedule. Hundreds of fans packed in to watch the 2-5 favorite—named after a Barbados golf course—race against five experienced rivals in the six-furlong maiden race. "Everyone wants to see what $16 million can buy you," said the horse's jockey. (More horse racing stories.)