Diamond Out Of Melbourne Cup Carte Diamond has been ruled out of the Emirates Melbourne Cup after crashing through a running rail during track work on Tuesday morning. The four-year-old was rounding a turn at Flemington racecourse when jockey Weichong Marwing slipped and fell from the saddle. Carte Diamond continued galloping and crashed into the rail at the top of the straight, severing one of his hindquarters through a metal stake in the process. The son of Theatrical came to a sudden halt with blood streaming down his limbs, where it was revealed he had suffered two deep lacerations to his hindquarters. Brian Ellison´s colt will remain in Australia for treatment but it is not yet known whether the injury will be career threatening. Carte Diamond, a 10-1 chance to win the Melbourne Cup with bet365, was having his first spin at Flemington after he finished a creditable ninth in the Caulfield Cup on October 15. Ellison, whose mount was due to be ridden by Hong Kong-based jockey Brett Prebble, was left floored by the news. 'They have metal stakes rather than plastic ones in this country and he [Carte Diamond] just couldn´t get out of the way of it,' explained the Malton handler. 'It was just a gentle mile-and-a-half work-out to get him used to Flemington but things have obviously not worked out. 'The horse was absolutely flying as well. 'He´s never looked better and has put on weight since the Caulfield Cup so we were ever so confident. 'It´s bad news but I´m more disappointed for the horse.'After a successful spell hurdling at the start of the year, Carte Diamond underscored his potential on the level when he finished second behind Sergeant Cecil in the Ebor at York in August. Ellison now faces an anxious wait to see if the Ashley Carr-owned colt will be able to return to competitive action in the future. 'Although we were with him for about 12 hours after it happened, we will not know how serious it is for a couple of days yet,' added Ellison. 'He´s in a bad way at the moment and will stay in Australia. If the stake went through the tissue he might be alright but if it went through the muscle, then there could be big problems. 'It´s such a shame because the owner had just arrived out here and we were looking forward to a good week. 'We will just have to keep our fingers crossed that the horse is okay.' (C) PA Sport
