American Affair (Washington DC) has been ruled out of next month's G1 Nunthorpe Stakes at York, after a bone scan “highlighted some issues”, according to trainer Jim Goldie.
An eight-time winner for the Goldie stable, American Affair continued his remarkable rise through the ranks with a popular win in the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot last time, providing his trainer with the first Group 1 victory of a career spanning over three decades.
Goldie remains hopeful that American Affair will have further opportunities to add to his top-level tally in 2025, with an appearance at the Breeders' Cup top of the wishlist, but a tilt at the Nunthorpe is definitely off the cards.
“We're hoping it's not the end of his season,” said the trainer. “We thought, just to clear the decks, if we took him out of the Nunthorpe now, we wouldn't try to rush him back. We don't think it's that serious but, if you get a warning, you heed it.
“It was after his routine vaccine for equine flu, sometimes it sets off an allergic reaction, that's the whole idea of it. Basically, he went lame behind on us, but he came sound quite quick.
“Obviously, something was going on, so we decided to bone scan him and it highlighted some issues. If you scan most horses in training you'll find something, but we're just being careful.”
Goldie added, “The Breeders' Cup isn't until November 1. I've taken advice from various vets that I work with and they think he can make that. I'm reasonably confident we'll get him there.”
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