Thistlecrack out for season with injury

Trainer Colin Tizzard’s stable star Thistlecrack’s hopes of landing the blue riband of jump racing the Cheltenham Gold Cup this year are over as an injury yesterday ruled him out for the rest of the season. The nine-year-old, who went down to his first defeat in five starts over fences last time out to Many Clouds who then collapsed and died, was found to have a slight tendon tear. “The vet scanned him this morning and it’s a slight tendon tear,” said Tizzard. “We’ve seen it at every yard and it happens every year.” Tizzard, though, still has an imposing hand in the Gold Cup-which takes place on March 17 bringing the racing festival to a climax-with his impressive Welsh Grand National winner Native River the new favourite. Tizzard also has the veteran Cue Card-who was well beaten by his younger stablemate Thistlecrack in the prestigious King George VI Chase in late December-on course for another tilt at a race which saw him come to grief three fences from home last year when in line for a million pound bonus had he won it.