No more for Yes Yes Yes after leg injury
Star colt Yes Yes Yes has been retired with a tendon injury ending his career.
The winner of the $14 million Everest in the spring, Yes Yes Yes was found to have heat in his near foreleg on Saturday morning.
While the injury is not considered too serious, veterinary advice is it could have become worse had connections continued.
Trainer Chris Waller said in a detailed statement the colt had been found to have a small lesion in the tendon.
Yes Yes Yes missed a scheduled race day gallop on Saturday ahead of a campaign aimed at Royal Ascot in June.
“It has now been confirmed by our vet that it was due to a small lesion in a tendon in his left front leg,” Waller said.
“Yes Yes Yes does not present as lame or sore, however despite it being at the minor end of the scale of a tendon injury the vet does assure me that if we were to push on with his campaign it could quickly become a more significant problem and as with any horse this cannot be contemplated.
Waller said recovery could take up to 12 months and retirement was in the best interests of the horse.
Coolmore Stud bought into Yes Yes Yes last year and the son of Rubick will stand at their farm.
Rubick is a son of Encosta De Lago out of the regally bred Sliding Cube, a close relation to Redoute’s Choice.
Yes Yes Yes was runner-up to Bivouac in the Group One Golden Rose in September before beating older sprinters in the $14 million Everest.
“Racing can deliver cruel blows but my team are proud to look back on the short career of Yes Yes Yes and admire the achievements he made,” Waller said.
“… I have no doubt that had the Golden Slipper not been hampered by wet conditions and drawing the extreme outside barrier, that he would have figured in the finish of our most prestigious two-year-old event.
“On his return as a three-year-old, his development was clearly evident and he returned with two excellent performances at the highest level before peaking in his third run of the campaign for the Everest where he was electric when he cruised to victory.
“The significance of this win can be summed up by the fact he defeated 10 individual Group One winners and had succeeded at Australian racings pinnacle in only his eighth career start.
“He is a very special colt and I have been very fortunate to train some great horses but it has been a privilege to train a colt that boasts the qualities he has, coupling physical prowess and mental aptitude beyond his years giving a glimpse sample of how good this horse is.
“It has been a brief but amazing ride with a wonderful colt and I am sure will make a great stallion in the future given the talent and ability he possessed as a racehorse.”