The Gordon Elliott-trained Labaik, an impressive winner of the Grade One Sky Bet Supreme Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival in March, may have finished his career after suffering a bad injury at Punchestown last month in the Punchestown Champion Hurdle.
The temperamental grey has refused to race four times in the last 12 months and earlier on during the Punchestown Festival, Elliott’s charge initially again refused to start in the Herald Champion Novice Hurdle.
However, he did take part in the Punchestown Champion Hurdle later on in the week finishing a creditable fourth, but the County Meath handler has revealed that a bad injury has left his jump racing career in the balance.
The six-year-old son of Montmatre undoubtedly has a real touch of class and his owners only recently decided not to sell him at the Goffs UK sale at Aintree in April.
Regarding the injury, Elliott commented:
He was very good and Davy Russell said if he’d jumped any of the last three hurdles he might nearly have won. He came home and he was very sore on Friday night, so we’ll see how he is, but I’d say we won’t be seeing him for a good while.
He was in the vet’s (on Friday night) and the chances of running again could be very slim. He’s a good horse. Unfortunately he’s quirky, but that’s the way it goes.
