Gulfstream Park: Capt. Candyman Can retired

HALLANDALE BEACH, Fla. - Trainer Ian Wilkes announced that his Grade 1 winner Capt. Candyman Can has been retired following his sixth-place finish in Saturday’s Sir Shackleton Stakes, a race he’d won here two years earlier.

Capt. Candyman Can, now 7, gave Wilkes the first Grade 1 win of his career when he was placed first on a disqualification in the King’s Bishop at Saratoga in August 2009.

“He bled in the race today, and we don’t want to do anything to hurt this horse,” Wilkes said. “He’s been a lot of fun for us, and he holds a special place in my heart.”

Wilkes said Capt. Candyman Can will return to the racetrack later this year as a stable pony after some time at Starlight Training Center near Churchill Downs.

“We’ll give him a little time off, bring him out to Starlight, and take our time making him into a pony,” Wilkes said. “I won’t rush him. Everyone loves him around the barn, so it will be great to still be able to have him around with us.”