Gingernuts.

Photo credit: Te Akau Racing Facebook page

By Equestrian Life

Champion New Zealand galloper Gingernuts, who won the Rosehill Guineas earlier in the year, is recovering following surgery to repair a fractured near fore pastern.

The horse was injured while cantering to the starting gates for the Group One $2 million Emirates Stakes on Saturday at Flemington, and when he was loaded into a horse ambulance and ferried to the University of Melbourne’s Veterinary Clinic at Werribee some feared the worst.

Fortunately, it was a non-life threatening fracture and the horse has reportedly come through surgery well — with connections hoping the triple Group One winner will make a full recovery.

The horse’s injury was more serious than first thought following a scan, and surgery took place within hours on Monday evening. Four screws were inserted into the pastern. The horse will spend the next week at Werribee, followed by a month at a nearby property before heading home for a long spell in New Zealand.

The four-year-old Iffraaj gelding has won six of his 12 starts including the recent Group 1 Windsor Park Stakes over 1600m at Hastings on September 23rd. He has earned $1.25m.

Tosen Stardom went on to win the Emirates Stakes for trainer Darren Weir.

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