Nicky Henderson managed to give a cautiously optimistic flyer at Buzz on Saturday, a day after the Cesarewitch winner suffered a serious injury on his last run before the Long Walk Hurdle.
After Newmarket, the gray Thurloe-owned Thoroughbreds shot towards the head of the market at Stayers’ Hurdle with a Coral Hurdle win – but suffered a broken pelvis in his last practice before his goal at the weekend.
Speaking at Ascot, the Seven Barrows coach said, “Buzz is good. We all thought he was as bright, happy, and good as he could be. It’s extraordinary. If you go to his chest on a normal day, he looks as grumpy as he can be and pretends he’s going to bite you, But he didn’t – and he was drawing faces in your face. And yet I went to see him.
Oisin Murphy rides Buzz (close to the side) to win a Cesarewitch from former Triumph Burning Victory
“He was tied up and it was like he wanted a hug. He pricked his ears and wanted a carrot and he was ‘help me daddy.’ He knows he’s not the same person.
“I would say the signs are good – the first 48 hours are always crucial, because if they have internal bleeding or bleeding. But we went through the first 24 hours.
“You’ve got a complication problem, like colic, because it’s still standing up. But you still have to eat. It’s the weirdest diet he or I ever want to eat, except it has a lot of carrots and he’ll get bored and have a long time, but we We will take care of him and he will get the best treatment.
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Head coach Nicky Henderson admitted he always thought Champ was special after landing the First Division Long Walk Hurdle at Ascot on Saturday
“We will do everything we can to bring him back – not just to get back, but to get back on track. There is every chance of him coming back and that is our ambition.
“It’s a 12-month job, I’d say. If someone said you could bring it back for Christmas next year, you’d agree.
“I remember what happened to Fondmort. It was much more dangerous at this point and it was a huge situation to save his life and he’d never run again.” We do not know to what degree he was injured. We don’t want to be too angry just yet, it’s better for him to rest and just stand still.”