Five-time Group I winning sprinter Lankan Rupee could have a future as a showjumper after being retired from racing.
Trainer Mick Price felt it was the right time to call stumps on the grand campaigner's career after he ran sixth in the Group II Schillaci Stakes won by Super Cash at Caulfield on Saturday.
Lankan Rupee won eight times at stakes level and won the TJ Smith Stakes, Oakleigh Plate, Manikato Stakes, Newmarket Handicap and Lightning Stakes at Group I level.
However the eight-year-old gelding hadn't won since his Lightning Stakes win at Flemington in February 2015 where he beat Brazen Beau and Deep Field.
Lankan Rupee, who won over $4million in his racing career, is now likely to be schooled as a showjumper with Price's 14-year-old daughter Georgia keen to ride him.
"He's finished, we don't need to go banging around for prizemoney," Price told Melbourne radio station RSN.
"He was only going to run in the good races, I wasn't going to let him go down.
"He is probably going to go home – Georgia is 14 and had her eye on him for a fair while.
"There could also be a home for him at Living Legends (champion horse retirement property) as they have asked about him.
"I would think if he doesn't make a happy showjumping type of horse he may be at Living Legends."
Although he has lost one former superstar horse from the racetrack, Price has gained an up-and-coming star with Saturday's Group I Caulfield Guineas winner Mighty Boss.
However Price is not convinced too many studs are going to come knocking to try to buy his $101 Guineas winner.
"The Caulfield Guineas does not hold the colt status it used to, I'm not thinking too far ahead. If a stud (deal) comes, it comes," Price said.
"I own 10 percent of him and I did that as I had a bit of a man crush on him.
"The horse just had a really good week and we had the timing exactly right."
