No Nirvana for this Franco and her owners - scintigraphy spells the end of her race career

Regally bred mare Nirvana Franco has been retired after nuclear scintigraphy confirmed multiple career-ending issues.

Trainer Ray Green said the filly had been harboring problems for a long time, explaining why she never fulfilled her early promise on the track.

“We always thought she’d develop into a nice horse but she was never completely sound and you could see that plain as day on the track.”

Nirvana Franco had a history of lameness in her right foreleg but Green encountered further issues in her latest preps and Matamata Veterinary Services vet Barbara Hunter’s report left little doubt that she should be retired.

Increased radiopharmaceutical uptake in the right front pedal bone and fetlock is shown by the dark areas arrowed at left.Scintigraphy revealed a moderate to severe injury to the right hind suspensory ligament, as well as severe bone disease of the right front feltock and significant bone inflammation of the right front foot.

“Given the moderate prognosis associated with each of these injuries individually, the combination of injuries is likely to be problematic for a career in racing,” Hunter said.

Green agreed with Hunter that while treatment options were available, including surgery, it made little sense to pursue them.

“She hasn’t done enough to warrant carrying on,” Green said. “She’d have to be an Adore Me to presevere.

“We certainly had high hopes for her early but we always seemed to run into another hurdle. She’s been harboring problems for a long time hence her performances weren’t what we anticipated.”

Nearea Franco was a topline race mare, winning 11 of her 34 starts.Pipped a head

In only eight starts, Nirvana Franco ran three seconds and a third, her closest effort when pipped a head at Cambridge last Christmas Eve.

Her earnings of $7745 were far from what everyone anticipated, given her great pedigree page.

She was so well bred, and looked so good in the ring, Lincoln Farms’ boss John Street had to go to $100,000 to secure her at the 2020 national yearling sale in Christchurch.

Nirvana Franco’s impressive pedigree page.Green said breeder Nevele R Stud and Spreydon Lodge had been reluctant to sell the filly and retained 10% of her, John and Lynne Street also joined in the ownership by Trevor Casey, the Red and Blue Syndicate, Grant Dickey, Margaret Rabbitt and the Excell Syndicate.

By champion stallion Bettor’s Delight, Nirvana Franco is the ninth foal of top mare Nearea Franco, who won 11 of her 34 starts.

She won seven of her nine starts at four, including the Group I Four-Year-Old Diamond at Cambridge in 1:54.4 and Queen Of Hearts at Alexandra Park, and was twice named aged pacing mare of the year.

Nearea Franco’s most famous foal was her first, Nike Franco, who won 32 races, 14 in the States where she set a record mile mark of 1:48. The year before Nirvana Franco she left talented colt Shan Noble.

Nirvana Franco’s grand dam No Paba was a half sister to 1990 US Horse of the Year Beach Towel.

Nirvana Franco will now head back to Christchurch and Nevele R Stud where the next branch of the family will be bred.