In a shedrow accident at Santa Anita Park, the colt broke loose and when Jeff Lukas tried to stop him, the excited horse slammed into him with such force that it fractured his skull and left him in a coma for several weeks.
He ultimately moved to Atoka, Oklahoma in 2007 to work for David Burrage, who had been the accountant and general manager for Lukas Racing Stables.
At that time, Burrage was a banker and owned the First Bank in Atoka, which employed Lukas, who lived a quiet life until his death at age 58 in March 2016.
Owner/trainer Warren A. Croll, Jr. had the heavy favorite in Holy Bull, with second choice going to Tabasco Cat's California nemesis, Brocco.
Although the colt recovered and rider Pat Day got him to within striking distance of the frontrunners, he tired in the stretch run and finished sixth.
In the fall of 2000, Tabasco Cat was sold to the Japan Bloodstock Breeders' Association and stood at their Shizunai Stallion Station until 2004, when he died at age thirteen from a heart attack while in the breeding shed.