Kauto retirement talk 'very premature' Paul Nicholls says talk of Kauto Star retiring is 'very premature'. The 12-year-old was sent off at 3-1 in the Betfred Cheltenham Gold Cup but pulled up on the first circuit after overstretching himself jumping the water. However, Nicholls is refusing to draw stumps on his career despite his advancing years. The Ditcheat handler said in his column at www.betfair.com/paulnicholls: "We just ran out of time with him. "But Kauto is 100 per cent, and we will canter him away and rough him off for the summer and see where we stand when he comes back in. "But any talk of retirement is very premature. Clive and I haven't even discussed it, and I dare say we won't in any great detail until Kauto comes back in, in July. "This season told everyone not to be so hasty in writing him off."
