David Thiselton
The Adam Marcus-trained Equus Champion Miler Vardy will miss the SA Champions Season but should soon be able to start light work on the long road to getting him back to his best.
Meanwhile, his Grade 1-winning stablemate Mississippi Burning departs for a stud career in Australia today, whilst the hard-knocking Grade 1 performer Princess Calla is residing at her owner Mario Ferreira’s private KZN establishment and enjoying her work across the road at Summerveld.
Vardy was found to have a small lesion on his suspensory branch while preparing for the Cape Summer Season.
Fortunately, the yard picked it up immediately from the heat and swelling, so it not a career ending injury.
The five-year-old Var gelding has returned from injury before and it did not stop him from performing at the highest level.
After beating One World in the Grade 3 Winter Classic he had an operation to remove chips from both his near fore knee and his off fore fetlock joint. He came back to win both the Grade 2 Green Point Stakes and Grade 1 L’Ormarins Queen’s Plate, beating big guns of the like of One World, Rainbow Bridge, Hawwaam, Do It Again, Undercover Agent and Twist Of Fate.
The suspensory lesion was scanned again two months after its discovery and the veterinarian advised he could up his exercise routine from walking to trotting. Marcus always adds two weeks before carrying out veterinary advice to up his work routine.
He said, “There is no rush so we just give him the benefit of any doubt.”
Vardy has been trotting for two months and the next scan is now due. It is hoped he will then be able to resume light work, which will gradually be increased.
Princess Calla is being ridden work by Anton Marcus at Summerveld.
Adam expects her comeback run to be in the Grade 3 Umzimkhulu Stakes over 1400m at Scottsville on April 4. He said this was the natural stepping stone race into the Grade 2 WSB Fillies Guineas. He said there were many options open to a filly during the SA Champions Season so the connections could afford to take it one step at a time. He felt the 2200m of the Vodacom Durban July might stretch her at this stage. However, he added considering the light weight a three-year-old filly would carry participation was not out of the question, although he said any thoughts of this were yet to be discussed by the connections.
Adam will raid the Grade 1 SA Fillies Sprint with Grade 2 Khaya Stables Diadem runner up Hello Winter Hello before she retires to stud. She is not the soundest so prefers the Cape Town training tracks and rings which consist of natural sand and are thus softer.
