2000 Guineas winner Ugo Foscolo sidelined
GROUP one winner Ugo Foscolo has returned to New Zealand for a period of rehabilitation after sustaining another injury setback.
The son of Zacinto impressed in two trials wins for Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott before its latest injury concern and connections decided the horse’s recovery would be best managed at home.
“He’s suffering from muscle soreness and we’ve been through this before with him,” said Jonathan Scully, racing manager for part-owner Kevin Hickman.
“The call was made by Kevin and myself to bring the horse back here,” Scully said.
“We’ve got the facilities and good paddocks and he can be knee deep in grass and be on the treadmill when he’s ready.”
Ugo Foscolo arrived in New Zealand on Wednesday and treatment is already underway.
“We had the physio to him this morning and he hadn’t seen a horse as sore as him for a while,” Scully said.
“We will be letting the horse tell us when he’s ready to go back to the races, it will be a while but he’s still young.”
Originally prepared in New Zealand by Cambridge trainer Stephen Marsh, Ugo Foscolo won five of its six starts in NZ, culminating in his Group One New Zealand 2000 Guineas success last season.
He raced just once across the Tasman, finishing last on a Heavy 10 track in the Group One Canterbury Stakes won by Le Romain during Sydney’s rain-plagued autumn.