RYEDALE’S sprinting sensation Shaquille has been retired from racing, and will now go to stand at stud in Newmarket.

Trained by Julie Camacho and husband Steve Brown, the three-year-old began the year on a disappointing note when he refused to go into the stalls when favourite for the valuable All-Weather Final Sprint at Newcastle back in April.

But after that, he developed into one of the season’s top sprinters, winning four races on the trot including the Group 1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot and Group 1 Darley July Cup at Newmarket.

Steve said: “It has been amazing and we had some wonderful days with him. His wins at Ascot and Newmarket showed that he was a very good horse. 

“He did things the hard way, losing all that ground at the start at Ascot and then pulling so hard at Newmarket, but it showed what a good horse he was. 

“It has been a great chapter in our lives and we thoroughly enjoyed it.”

He continued: “It has been a great journey which we have been on with his owners Martin Hughes and his family, Peter Rawlings and Michael O’Shaughnessy and we would also like to thank Paige Harrison and all the team at home for their hard work and support. 

“We will now look forward to following his career at stud.” 

 Shaquille ran in nine races and from the very start looked a useful prospect when winning first time out at York back in July 2022. 

He won a further six races, including those two at Group 1 level and netted more than £782,000 in prize money for his owners. 

Following his retirement, he will now stand at the Dullingham Stud near Newmarket.