Overview
- Preparing for the Kentucky Derby, Kentucky horseman Mark Toothaker said a December 2025 laugh at Younghoe Koo’s whiffed kick triggered a seizure, and his nurse wife called 911.
- A CT scan showed a tennis-ball-sized mass on the left side of his brain that had shifted his brain about six millimeters to the right.
- Surgeons at the University of Kentucky removed the tumor, pathology found it benign, and he went home within a week with no lasting damage.
- Toothaker plans to attend the Derby to cheer Spendthrift Farm’s Further Ado after months of travel left the tumor otherwise unnoticed.
- The Giants released Koo two weeks after the botched attempt, and he remains a free agent as outlets highlight the unlikely link between a viral play and a timely diagnosis.