One year ago, the future looked bright for freshman trotting colt Deep Impact after finishing third to Southwind Frank and Marion Marauder in the William Wellwood Memorial. Fast forward one year: the trotter's sophomore campaign only features a handful of starts.
After a rookie season with a 3-2-1 summary and eight top-five finishes from nine starts, the son of Donato Hanover - Glide Power appeared to be rounding into form at three with a solid showing in the Townsend Ackerman at The Meadowlands on August 5. With John Campbell at the controls for trainer Brad Maxwell, Deep Impact finished third to Dayson in the fastest trotting mile of the year for any three-year-old in 2016. The mile was timed in 1:51.2, with Deep Impact trotting his own mile in 1:52.2.
That was the last time we saw Deep Impact. Co-owner Tim Murray told Trot Insider that the colt was shut down due to a ligament issue found after that start.
"We could have raced him and made some money but surgery was best for the horse. We think he's going to be good going forward," said Murray. "[John] Campbell was high on him after the drive...we took the long-term approach for the animal."
The surgery, which Murray classified as a "minor procedure", took place at the end of August and will sideline Deep Impact for the remainder of the year.
Murray co-owns Deep Impact, a winner of $171,830 with Maxwell, Van Camp Trotting Corp. and Doug Millard.