Mystic Guide out for season with chip in knee
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. – Mystic Guide, who won the $12 million Dubai World Cup in March, will be sidelined at least for the remainder of 2021 after being diagnosed with a chip in his right knee that will require surgery, his connections announced Saturday morning.
The surgery will be performed by Dr. Larry Bramlage at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Ky., within the week, trainer Michael Stidham said by phone Saturday. A press release put out Saturday by Godolphin Racing, which owns Mystic Guide, said that Bramlage expects the surgery to be “very straight forward and uncomplicated.”
Mystic Guide would be out of training for at least 60 days subsequent to the surgery, according to Stidham, who added that a decision on whether to bring Mystic Guide back to the races or retire him will be made at a later date by Godolphin Racing.
“This is going to be up to Godolphin whether or not they retire him or we get another year with him,” Stidham said. “In my eyes, I’m hoping we have him ready make a return to Dubai, that would be a beautiful thing to be able to do that.”
Mystic Guide, who won the Jim Dandy here as a 3-year-old and was second in the Grade 1 Jockey Club Gold Cup at Belmont Park last October, won the Dubai World Cup emphatically in March. Following a freshening, Mystic Guide returned in the Grade 2 Suburban on July 3 at Belmont Park, where he finished second to Max Player. Stidham said in subsequent training at the Fair Hill Training Center in Maryland, Mystic Guide wasn’t moving right on the track. Initial X-rays did not reveal the chip, but subsequent scans at the New Bolton Center in Pennsylvania did reveal the chip in the upper joint of the right knee, Stidham said.
“It’s certainly unfortunate, but I am glad that we know the extent of the injury and can move forward from here,” said Stidham, who had been considering Mystic Guide for the Grade 1 Pacific Classic on Aug. 21 at Del Mar for his next start.
Mystic Guide, a son of Ghostzapper, has a record of 4-3-2 from nine career starts with earnings of $7,593,200. In addition to the Dubai World Cup and Jim Dandy, Mystic Guide also won the Grade 3 Razorback.