First Seal missed the 2015 Tramway Stakes on Saturday due to a foot issue and an MRI scan conducted today will determine the immediate future of the Group 1 winner.
First Seal may not be seen at the races during the 2015 Spring Racing Carnival. Photo by: Steve Hart
First Seal was set to start her 2015 Spring Racing Carnival campaign in the Group 2 Warwick Stakes (1400m) at Royal Randwick on August 22, but she was withdrawn on the day of the race due to a foot abscess.
Thompson was confident that First Seal had overcome the issues and she was included in the entries for the Group 2 Tramway Stakes (1400m) at Royal Randwick on Saturday, but the problem reared its head again on Saturday and she was scratched from the race.
An x-ray conducted yesterday morning showed that First Seal had suffered no bone damage, but Thompson is hopeful that an x-ray will give him a clearer understanding into the issue that faces the four-year-old.
“She had a foot abscess two weeks ago and it obviously busted out and she had a hole in her foot,” Thompson told Racing Ahead.
“It was good for ten days, but then on Friday there was a little bit of a pulse and on Saturday morning she trotted out scratchy, so we weren’t going to risk it.
“We took her out and just being who she is we covered all bases and x-rayed it and it was clean on x-ray, but she has gone to the University this morning and is getting an MRI on her foot.
“It is a worry, but there is still plenty of time in the spring and plenty of nice races for her.
“The main thing is to get the horse right and we can worry about the races after that.
“The thing with the foot is that it can come good overnight like it did two weeks ago and we just want to make sure we have a good picture of what we are dealing with, so we can treat it aggressively and get on top of it.”
The 2015 Spring Racing Carnival campaign of First Seal is now in doubt, but she remains in the nominations for the Group 1 Epsom Handicap (1600m) that will be held at Royal Randwick on October 3 and the Group 1 Cox Plate (2040m) that will be contested at Moonee Valley on October 4.
First Seal is currently available at 2015 Epsom Handicap odds of $7 with Ladbrokes and he remains a narrow favourite from Kermadec ($8), Sweynesse ($10), Pornichet ($11), Royal Descent ($11) and Winx ($13).
