Kettle Corn , a dual graded stakes winner campaigned by Lee and Susan Searing's C R K Stable, has been retired due to an injury that occurred during his last start in the Sept. 29 John Henry Turf Championship Stakes (gr. IIT) at Santa Anita Park.
"He came out of the race with the injury and we just decided not to bring him back," said trainer John Sadler. According to Sadler, the 6-year-old son of Candy Ride , who is currently stabled at Betfair Hollywood Park, sustained a fractured sesamoid.
Plans to stand Kettle Corn are currently being negotiated. Sadler said the horse would be a prime candidate for California, South America, or the Midwest.
"We're working out a few things....We think we'll have something worked out for him within the next couple of days," he explained.
Kettle Corn initially raced on the Midwest circuit for owner Jim H. Plemmons, who bred him in Kentucky out of the Lil E. Tee mare Somethingbeautiful. George Leonard III trained the colt to three wins in his first seven starts.
Privately purchased at 4 after a second-place finish in an Arlington Park allowance race, the colt made his first start for C R K and Sadler in July 2011. In 19 races for his current connections Kettle Corn has only finished out of the money four times.
A winner of the 2011 Native Diver Handicap (gr. III) at Betfair Hollywood Park, he also captured this year's San Diego Handicap (gr. II) at Del Mar July 27. Among his eight graded stakes-placed finishes are a respective third and second in the 2012 and 2013 runnings of the Hollywood Gold Cup Handicap (gr. I), a second in last year's Californian Stakes (gr. II), and a second in this year's TVG Pacific Classic (gr. I), all behind Game On Dude.
Kettle Corn retires with a record of 8-6-5 from 26 starts and earnings of $853,361.
"(Kettle Corn) is a very professional racehorse, very honest," said Sadler. "He ran well all the time and could run anywhere from a mile to a mile and a quarter.
"He was just a really nice, nice horse to be around and a nice horse to train. You always got an honest race out of him."
