09 August 2023 , 11:12
959
0
Aidan O’Brien’s best sprinter has been retired prematurely after suffering a leg fracture.
Little Big Bear was the outstanding two-year-old in Europe last year winning four of his five starts, including the Windsor Castle Stakes at Royal Ascot. He sealed championship honours when he took the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes by seven lengths at the Curragh.
This year he failed to stay 1m in the 2,000 Guineas but bounced back to win a Group 2 at Haydock and then finished second to Shaquille in the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot. Their rematch for the July Cup was a one-sided affair as Little Big Bear was badly hampered during the race as he trailed in last behind the Julie Camacho star.
Announcing his retirement to stud, Coolmore revealed that the son of No Nay Never had suffered a condylar fracture on the right front fetlock. O’Brien said: “Little Big Bear is a super horse; that’s the long and the short of it. Different class, different gear and matured very early for a big horse. He’s big, scopey, strong, clear winded and very, very fast – a class sprinter.”
Bred by Tim Hyde senior and junior of Camas Park Stud & Summerhill, Little Big Bear was bought for €320,000 as a yearling at the 2021 Arqana Deauville sale.
Housebound ex-serviceman enjoys special window visit from physio's horse