Gordon Elliott returns to training Thursday, six months after he was suspended for conduct unbecoming to the sport after a photo of Elliott astride a dead horse surfaced earlier this year.
The trainer spoke to the Racing Post about what he thought was the lowest point throughout this controversy: the loss of stars like Sir Gerhard and Quilixios from his barn.
As he watched those horses move on to other barns and then win at the Cheltenham Festival, Elliott reflected on his regrets about losing those horses.
“I had worked very hard to source those horses, and then they were gone,” he told Racing Post. “Just like that. When Envoi Allen was here, there wasn't a night I didn't lie in bed thinking about him. And now that he is gone, there still isn't a night I don't lie in bed thinking about him.”
In all, the trainer lost about a dozen horses from his yard in the course of his suspension, but the relationships with those owners remain cordial despite the controversy.
“I have never had a cross word with any of the owners who left,” he said. “I still speak to them all and the gate is always open. I understand completely why they had to go.”
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