Sir Delius was found to have a high chance of sustaining an injury.

Sir Delius was the favourite for both the Cox Plate and Melbourne Cup (with Sportsbet) and many racing fans were excited to see how the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott trained stallion would fair in those Group 1’s.

But now, we'll never know.

The Group 1 Underwood Stakes and Group 1 Turnbull Stakes winner has been medically scratched from any Victorian races for the remainder of the spring, after Sir Delius failed Racing Victoria’s veterinary protocols.

The son of Frankel was found to have a high chance of sustaining an injury if he were to run in Cox Plate or Melbourne Cup.

In 2021, Racing Victoria introduced strict veterinary protocols due to multiple internationals being put down following the Melbourne Cup, in the numerous years prior.

Prominent owner John O’Neill experienced this exact situation with both Marmelo and Le Don De Vie, which resulted in a long stint in the paddock for both horses - these happened even before Racing Victoria made the protocols stricter.

“It’s tragic. I’ve been through this with Marmelo. He came out and ran second in the Melbourne Cup (in 2018), then they scanned him (the year after) and said that he wasn’t fit to run,” O’Neill told SENTrack & RSN’s Giddy Up.

“We argued and went through the process with Racing Victoria, but it’s all about safety.

“We had the same thing with Le Don De Vie, he ran second in the Metropolitan leading into the Cup - they scanned him and he was stood out for 12 months.

“I think the big concern here is because you’re not fit to race in the Melbourne Cup, from a safety scenario, we weren’t allowed to run Marmelo anywhere.”

O’Neill admitted that he hopes Sir Delius can still run in The Five Diamonds in Sydney at Rosehill but believes a spell for the stallion is most likely what will come next.

“Hopefully Sir Delius can go back to Sydney and run, but if the vets are saying there is an issue with the horse from a Melbourne Cup perspective, unfortunately there is probably a problem with the horse in any race,” O’Neill said.

“We sent Marmelo back overseas and we were barred from all precincts around the world.

“So, maybe a spell, look after him, hope the scan improves, maybe it’s a time job.

“I just hope they don’t have to put screws in legs and things like that because as soon as we did that with Le Don De Vie it was all over.

“I feel really sorry for the owners and Gai and Adrian. It’s a huge investment these horses.

“I just hope for the horse’s wellbeing that he’s fine, but I would say he’s probably got a spell.”

Gareth Hall echoed that sentiment, believing Sir Delius’ future is black and white.

“They won’t allow him to race in Victoria for the rest of the spring,” Hall added.

“The independent experts at Racing Victoria say that he has a high chance of sustaining an injury if he went on to a Cox Plate or Melbourne Cup.

“So, Gai and Adrian will have to work out what they will do next, but for me it’s black and white.

“If you’ve got three independent imaging experts that say he can’t run, then what else does Racing Victoria do?”