Racing was canceled yesterday at Aqueduct after the second race due to unsafe track conditions caused by several hours of rain.

Over a track that was sloppy and sealed, Silver Paradise, the odds-on favorite in the second race, was setting the pace along the rail when she took several bad steps heading into the turn. At first, it appeared that Silver Paradise, ridden by Javier Castellano, had broken down. But she got back into stride and made another bid for the lead before being eased at the top of the stretch.

“I think the racetrack is unsafe,” Castellano said afterward. “I was nice and easy on the lead, nothing was wrong with the horse, then she took a bad step in a hole and went bloop. I thought the horse broke down. I moved up one more lane to keep it safe, and she did it again at the three-eighths pole. Bloop-bloop.”

With the horses in the paddock for the third race, the riders met with NYRA management, including racing secretary P.J. Campo, steward Braulio Baeza Jr. and director of racing surfaces John Passero. Both sides agreed to cancel.