Gordon Elliott has been forced to rule his star staying chaser Gerri Colombe out for the rest of the season.
Last year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup runner-up and Aintree Bowl winner has not been seen since disappointing on his reappearance at Down Royal in early November, when he finished only third behind Envoi Allen in his bid for back-to-back victories in the Ladbrokes Champion Chase.
Since then he has missed several possible engagements, with Elliott stating he was not 100 per cent happy with the nine-year-old but that he hoped he would have him back at concert pitch for the major festivals in the spring.
However, those hopes have been dashed after the Robcour-owned gelding suffered a setback which means he will not return until the autumn at the earliest.
In a statement posted on his website, Elliott said: “Unfortunately Gerri Colombe has met with a setback which means he will not run again this season.
“It’s not career ending or especially serious but it’s come at the wrong time of the season so we’re going to have to rule him out of the spring festivals.
“It’s a big blow for ourselves and the Robcour team but we will concentrate on getting him right for next season when hopefully all roads will lead back to the Gold Cup.”
The news of Gerri Colombe’s absence prompted Coral to trim Galopin Des Champs, who claimed his third Irish Gold Cup in brilliant style at Leopardstown on Saturday, to 4-7 from 4-6 to complete another hat-trick in the Cheltenham Gold Cup next month.