Kauto Star suffered 'small bleed' after King George run

Kauto Star

Paul Nichols has said that Kauto Star bled slightly after finishing third to Long Run in the William Hill King George VI Chase at Kempton Park on Saturday.

It was the first time that the 11-year-old has been reported as bleeding after any of his previous 35 races but Nicholls reported the four-times King George winner to be in good shape the morning after and was not holding that as any significant excuse for his 19-length defeat as he attempted a record-breaking fifth victory in the King George.

Nicholls also confirmed that, after a discussion with Kauto Star’s owner Clive Smith, the horse will be trained for a fifth run in the totesport Cheltenham Gold Cup; a race that he has won twice, in 2007 and 2009, finished runner-up to stable companion Denman in 2008 and was a faller at the fourth-last when Imperial Commander won last season.

Nicholls made his first reference to Kauto Star bleeding on his twitter account when he said: “Kauto Star is fine today. Have to report that he did have a small bleed after the race. Will go straight for the Gold Cup now.”

Expanding on the subject on betfair.com, Nicholls said: “I have just spoken to Clive. We agreed that yesterday now gives us a bit of challenge with the horse - and hopefully we, and most importantly, the horse will rise to it. He will be prepared for a tilt at a third Gold Cup victory in March - different ground, different track, different day - and we would like to aim him for a third victory at Down Royal in the autumn, too.

"As long as he is enjoying his racing and running well, then he will continue - he is 11, not 13.

"Yesterday, was undoubtedly a big disappointment. He was never travelling or jumping with any real fluency, but it wasn't as if he ran a poor race. Without his blunder at the second last, he probably would have been a fair second to a very good horse.

"But that clearly wasn't his best form.

"I am not making excuses but I can reveal that when he got back last night and stuck his head in the water bucket, he bled from both nostrils. He has never done it before, and will probably never do it again.

"It wasn't a big bleed but it indicates that he probably bled during the race (possibly after his mistake at the second last, which meant he had to dig deep to get home), which would not have aided his cause."

The defeat of Kauto Star was compounded when Nicholls’ other runner, The Nightingale, who made mistakes at the eighth and 10th fences ran a tame race and was pulled up before two out and the horse was found to be suffering from a fibrillating heart on subsequent examination.

"We fancied The Nightingale to run well but he may have found three miles too far,” Nicholls explained. "I can reveal exclusively here that he finished distressed and we have discovered that he has a fibrillating heart, similar to the problem that Denman suffered from."

While this represents little more than a blip in a season where Nicholls has already won three Grade One races and more than £1million in prize money this has been, so far, his worst showing in January for the last five seasons.

The victory for Carlicue, in the first division of the Lincwear Maiden Hurdle at Ffos Las, was his fifth winner from 44 runners in January for a strike-rate of 11% - which compares with 20, 26, 28 and 21% in the previous four seasons.

The next major test of the yard’s wellbeing is likely to be next weekend where runners will include star two-mile chase Master Minded in the Grade One Victor Chase at Ascot.

Paul Wheeler

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