Black Caviar is retired

Black Caviar on the Newmarket gallops in her build-up to Royal Ascot last year. Image courtesy of racingfotos.com.

Black Caviar has run her last race and while it is sad that she will not now be returning to Royal Ascot, we were privileged to have the wonder mare here last year in the only one of her 25 races – all of which she won – outside Australia.

That Diamond Jubilee Stakes victory at the Royal Meeting in June could have been her last as she pulled muscles in her back when just hanging on to win by a head after her jockey, Luke Nolen, took it easy with her in the final strides.

Her trainer, Peter Moody, nursed her back to health, however, and she took Australia by storm once again this year, winning three more Group 1 races with ease to take her tally of races at the highest level to 15, breaking the previous record of 14 held by Kingston Town back in the 1980s.

Clearly something is not quite right with Black Caviar now – Moody says that she has "some aches and pains" – and her connections have wisely decided not to go to the well once too often.

Moody said today: "The owners and myself had a long chat over the last couple of days and at lunchtime today we decided 25 was a great number to go out on.

"Collectively the mare is in great shape. We thought long and hard about Ascot, Brisbane and Adelaide but it’s a good time to finish as she’s done everything we’ve asked of her.

"It’s time to pull the career on one of our finest horses ever. Let’s stop now before something can go haywire.

"What else can we achieve, we don’t want to do anything wrong by the horse. I just thought ‘job done, she gave her all’."

As with Frankel’s retirement last year, it’s another case of bidding farewell to a legend. But now the interest will surround her progeny, especially if she is covered by Frankel in the next few years.