Sprinter Sacre was found to be have suffered a small bleed after his comeback run in second in the Sodexo Clarence House Chase at Ascot today.
Plenty of fanfare surrounded his return to action and everything appeared to be going to plan before he tired between the final two fences and was beaten by Dodging Bullets.
He had been off the track for over a year with a heart problem and while his trainer Nicky Henderson was pleased to give him the all-clear on that front he did report that a small amount of blood was found in his nostrils when he was giving a post-race sample.
“He’s been scoped and the veterinary advice that I am being given is that they don’t think it was anything that affected his performance today, but keeping everyone in the picture they did find some blood in his nostrils when he was examined,” Henderson told Racing UK.
“I could do without it, but I don’t think it’s a serious problem. Celia Marr, the heart specialist, has been here all day and she was delighted with him. I don’t think the two things are in any way connected.
“It’s relevant but not seriously significant. You go through that extra bit of pressure in a race which you don’t do anywhere else.
“The veterinaries are filling me with confidence that there’s nothing of significance.”