Dunkirk Done
June 11, 2009 by Ryan
After setting the pace and coming again to finish second in the Belmont Stakes, $3.2 million auction purchase Dunkirk will be sidelined until next year in all likelihood. I won’t pretend to know anything about the bone structure of horses, but X-rays show that he has a non-displaced condylar fracture in his left hind cannon bone. This is very disappointing, because he had Horse of the Year potential. Todd Pletcher is confident that the son of Unbridled’s Song will be able to achieve his full potential after returning next year.
Reports show that he underwent surgery on Tuesday and a screw was inserted to stabilize the injury. He will be spending some time at Ashford Stud while he recovers. Click here for more information.
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Horse of the Year potential when compared with Einstein? C’mon, he’s a 3-year-old who hasn’t won a race this year. That said, I do think he showed a lot in the Belmont and hope he has a speedy recovery.
He has won twice this year if I remember correctly. When I say potential, I mean just that. If he would’ve nailed down the Haskell, Travers, and Breeders Cup Classic he would have been tough to beat. I have no doubts he had the capability of doing so.
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While it might not be impossible, I find it exceptionally unlikely that a 3-year-old colt could win Horse of the Year without winning at least one leg of the Triple Crown.
Dunkirk has a maiden win and a first-level allowance win. He’s been G1-placed twice, but projecting that to wins in the Haskell, Travers and Breeders’ Cup Classic? … I think that’s an incredible leap of faith.
As it stands now, he’s another in a growing group of unsound Unbridled’s Song foals. All three of the sire’s best in the last few months, Midshipman, Old Fashioned, now Dunkirk, too hurt to run. I used to pooh-pooh some of those who doubted the soundness of this line, but some of the evidence is hard to ignore.
I said he had the potential to be HOY, not that it was likely. He is a very special horse. Was it likely that he would have been HOY? Probably not. Was it possible? Yes.
One of my horses was operated on by Dr. Patty Hogan just before Dunkirk came in for his surgery. I saw the Dunkirk x-ray and it looked like a very recoverable injury; My guess would be that he’ll be back in training by the fall and definitely ready to roll by the end of the year, or when Gulfstream opens. He’s a very nice horse — if he can stay sound.
I see. Him and about 100 others, I guess.
Glenn you are clearly mistaken. There are very few horses with the raw talent that this one has. Let’s not forget how lightly raced he is.