Royal Ascot hammer blow as superstar horse Kyprios retires just weeks before third Gold Cup bid

ROYAL ASCOT has been dealt a hammer blow - after superstar horse Kyprios' retirement was confirmed.

Aidan O'Brien's all-conquering monster, one of the greatest racehorses ever, had long been odds-on with most bookies for a third Gold Cup on June 19.

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But a flare up of an injury has forced connections to announce his shock retirement aged seven, after an eyebrow-raising market move.

Owners Coolmore posted on X on Tuesday: "Kyprios Retires.

"Due to an aggravation of an old ringbone lesion we have decided to take no chances with Kyprios and although he is currently sound and doing well the decision has been made to retire him from racing."

Trainer O'Brien had insisted publicly as was well with the awesome stayer, who won 17 of his 21 races, after he turned awkwardly following his last win at Leopardstown earlier this month.

Kyprios had just won the Saval Beg in Ireland at odds of 1-14 when he moved gingerly in the winner's enclosure.

Footage seemingly from the following morning showed him moving well - and a post from Ballydoyle suggested as much.

But, as ever, the markets told the real story, with stablemate Illinois smashed in for the Gold Cup out of nowhere.

Kyprios' price shot up as a result and, though it did move back in in the following days, the writing was really on the wall.

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It's a shame that a true icon of racing, who won a staggering £2.7million on the track and was beaten just twice since May 2021, won't get one more shot as Royal Ascot glory.

But connections, who nursed him back from the brink of death over the winter of 2022, always said they would never risk him again.

And at least now he leaves fans with memories of his brilliance on the track rather than anything else.

One said: "An absolute legend in the sport, one of the best I’ve seen. Enjoy retirement, champ."

While another posted on X: "Great horse. Congratulations on a legendary career & so good of you to look after him with care."

Kyprios won two Gold Cups in his career and was on a remarkable nine-race winning streak - which included seven in a row last season.

'Lazy in front' as O'Brien would always say, Kyprios rare blew away fields, always doing enough when the going got tough to win with more than a bare margin in hand.

The big exception to that was probably his unforgettable Prix Du Cadran win on Arc weekend in October 2022.

He wandered all over the place in the final furlong, drifting right over to the near stand-side... but still won by 20 lengths.

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