Australian trip still on the cards for Ethical Diamond While recent Ebor winner Ethical Diamond has been ruled out of a potential Melbourne Cup bid, the Willie Mullins trained gelding could yet make the trip down under later this year. Despite his York win having in theory guaranteed him a run in "the race that stops a nation", Mullins immediately ruled that out, given that the five-year-old was unlikely to pass strict veterinary checks due to past injuries. However, Assistant Trainer Patrick Mullins said that the gelding may yet run in Australia: "He got a screw in a fetlock last year and obviously he has run in Cheltenham and Royal Ascot and York, but unfortunately to go to Melbourne in Australia he is not qualified. He can go to Sydney, but he can't go to the Melbourne Cup. "We've had a very good season with him, so we won't complain. We will consider going to carnivals in Australia with him, we will look at races in Sydney possibly. I know there is a big race down there around Cheltenham time. "He was very good (in York), I think he has learned to settle from running over hurdles in the winter and that is what has brought about the improvement." Additional reporting by Michael Graham.
