Hillstar has claimed his first Group One victory in the Canadian International at Woodbine run without the pre-post favourite Brown Panther.
The Tom Dascombe-trained Brown Panther acted up in the parade ring then bolted past the starting gate and did a lap of the course, dropping Richard Kingscote on the way.
His absence left fellow British horse, the Sir Michael Stoute-trained Hillstar, as the favourite and he travelled well for Ryan Moore to record a comfortable win over Big Blue Kitten.
“I am sure the boss (Stoute) had this race as a target from a long way out and it was always something we had in the backs of our minds if things were going well,” Moore said.
“Coming here we thought we could beat Brown Panther. He beat us at Chester but there’s always a horse race.
“It was just very sad for the connections.”
Brown Panther’s disappointed owner, former England footballer Michael Owen, made a quick trip to Canada before returning home to fulfil broadcast commitments.
“Long way too come for nothing! Thank goodness horse and jockey are both okay,” he tweeted.
