Via Michael Lee, Singapore Turf Club
Lim’s Cruiser won’t run in Tuesday’s £300,000 Group 2 Lennox Stakes (1400m) at Goodwood in UK after it was revealed he had hurt his left leg on Saturday.
Singapore’s two-time champion sprinter has been ticking along nicely through his latest prep towards his third tilt at an English race until travelling groom Lisa O’Shea detected a swelling to his near fore fetlock at his Newmarket stables on Saturday afternoon.
Lim’s Cruiser was immediately sent to the Newmarket veterinary centre for scans. While they luckily did not reveal any major injury to the affected area, trainer Stephen Gray still thought it was serious enough to warrant not only a withdrawal from Tuesday’s race, but also the end of the English adventure.
Gray, who would have flown to England after the Sunday race meeting at Kranji, was “absolutely gutted” when the news came through.
“We’re devastated. Things have been coming along so well, and he hurt his near fore fetlock on Saturday,” said the Kiwi handler.
“He’s not lame at all, the fetlock is just swollen. We have no idea how it came about.
“He galloped well the Saturday before, has been working nicely since, just had an easy canter on Saturday, and then later in the afternoon, Lisa saw the swelling.
“She was in hysterics, she was in tears when she rang us. We’re all absolutely gutted.
“I had to call (owner) Mr Lim (Siah Mong) and (racing manager) Mick Dittman first. There’s nothing worse than breaking such bad news to owners.
“The vets said there was some ligament damage around the tendon sheath. Maybe he twisted himself in his box or before, we won’t know.
“We’ve been there before. Sometimes horses don’t show such injuries after the impact, they remain dormant and then they just pop up later, but that’s the nature of racing and racehorses.
“Lim’s Cruiser was a sound horse and never had any issues before. The vet told me, ‘Steve, this kind of thing can happen in Singapore and it can happen here in England, and anywhere in the world’.
“There’s just no telling when and how it happens at times. I could have run him still, but I decided not to, he’s too good a horse.
“The vets said to bring him back for another scan in a week’s time and we’ll see where he’s at and then we can take the next course of action.
“England is over unfortunately. It’s a shame as we thought he had a good chance in the Lennox.
“Hopefully, he can still rest and recuperate here for a while and we can still look at bringing him back for the Raffles Cup.”
Lim’s Cruiser had two starts in England, running eighth first-up in the Group 1 Diamond Jubilee Stakes (1200m) at Royal Ascot on June 22 before running sixth in the Group 1 Darley July Cup (1200m) at Newmarket on July 13. Singapore champion jockey Vlad Duric flew over for the Diamond Jubilee Stakes ride while it was a local rider in Irish jockey John Egan who took over in the Darley July Cup and was meant to ride him in the Lennox Stakes.
The Group 1 Raffles Cup (1600m) is scheduled for September 22 and is the first Leg of the Singapore Triple Crown series.
