In a shock development, last year’s Darwin Cup winner Highly Decorated has succumbed to injury.
The Nicole Irwin-trained five-year-old gelding has suffered a tendon injury to his near foe and will now miss the entire Darwin Cup Carnival starting on July 2.
It’s a savage blow for Irwin as Highly Decorated, who arrived in the Top End a year ago with one career win, won seven straight at Fannie Bay including the $200,000 Great Northern Darwin Cup (2050m).
Arriving in Darwin with a rating of 49 and leaving a few weeks later with a rating of 86 – it was a meteoric rise of the most epic proportion for the South Australian galloper.
The Epaulette gelding made a successful return to Darwin last weekend with victory in the Oolloo Investments Handicap (1200m) – his first start since October last year.
It appeared as though Highly Decorated’s love of the Fannie Bay dirt surface would seemingly continue.
Naturally, the Irwin stable is devastated and he will be heading back to South Australia as soon as possible for stem cell therapy.
“His first run was meant to be the ROANT Cup next week, but he was feeling that well that we decided to give him a 1200m run last weekend,” Irwin said on Saturday.
“He pulled up fine from it – didn’t show any unsoundness at all.
“My husband David uses the infra-red camera quite a bit in the mornings and he had just sort of been noticing that there was a bit of swelling in that leg – we put the camera on it on Wednesday and it was glowing hot.
“Got the vet straight away on Thursday and unfortunately there was a hole there.
“Scans were sent to Morphettville vets via my great friend and confidant Andrew Hunt and they suggested he was a candidate for Platelet Rich Plasma therapy.”
PRP is a relatively new treatment which is commonly used for tendon and ligament injury.
It involves taking a small amount of blood from the horse and processing it in the laboratory to harvest the portion containing the platelets.
This portion contains high concentrations of various growth factors which are capable of stimulating enhanced healing responses in the damaged tissue.
The PRP is injected directly into the injured tissue under ultrasound guidance.
“Highly Decorated will go back as soon as possible and get booked in for that,” Irwin added.
“Not all horses are suitable for PRP, but he is – not all tendon injuries are suitable.
“He’ll then continue his rehab at our property at Monarto, near Murray Bridge.
“All going well he will be back next year.
“Understandably, the team and his owners are in shock and trying to process what this means for his future.
“He’s a bit of a celebrity here in Darwin after last year, so we thought he’s only a young horse we’d just campaign him back for another Darwin Carnival run.”
Irwin, who has based herself in the Top End for the short-term, is doing her best to put the disappointment of Highly Decorated’s injury behind her as she prepares for the 2022 Darwin Cup Carnival and other future endeavours.
“We’ve got eight others here in work for Carnival,” she said.
“At this stage the plans are to head to Kununurra for a month after the Darwin Cup Carnival.
“Back to South Australia to sort through some young stock and then back up here again.”
So who is Irwin now pinning her hopes on now during the Darwin Cup Carnival?
“It has to be Masterati, the old boy – he won first up at Fannie Bay two weeks ago,” she said.
“He’s having a run next weekend.
“Obviously, he’s got the Palmerston Sprint in mind.
“All going well, two more runs until then.
“If he goes well in them he’ll head to that.”
Highly Decorated winning the 2021 Darwin Cup followed by Masterati winning the $135,000 Palmerston Sprint in 2022 would be an extraordinary achievement.
Irwin is also eyeing the Darwin Guineas and NT Derby with a recent purchase, and perhaps the Rose Bowl with a few of her mares.
“I’ve got a nice three-year-old up here, Kentucky Ruler, who’s yet to prove himself,” she said.
“He’s doing everything right, but unfortunately for him he’s still a maiden.
“He’s run the distance, he’s run a couple of nice miles and a nice 2000m in Melbourne for Mick Maroney’s stable.
“It’s going to take a bit of luck to get him into the races we want him in, but I think he might get there.
“If he proves himself next weekend he’ll head towards the Guineas and the Derby.
“He galloped well this morning.
“There’s three races next week that the winners, if they’re three-year-olds, all get into the Guineas.”
Cowley’s Creek, who features at Fannie Bay today, is one other from the Irwin stable who could make an impression in coming weeks.
“If he wins today and keeps going on an upward spiral he may get a step up to the Cup,” Irwin said.
“Just not a 100 per cent sure we’re going to have a Cup runner.
“You never know, things change so quickly up here.
“We’ll just have to go day by day, week by week and see how the rest of the team comes up.”
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