Mucho Gusto Retired With Soft Tissue Injury

Mucho Gusto, winner of the 2020 Pegasus World Cup Invitational Stakes Presented by Runhappy (G1), has been retired due to a soft tissue injury, according to published reports.

The Bob Baffert-trained 5-year-old son of Mucho Macho Man  last raced at Santa Anita Park Dec. 26, running fourth in the San Antonio Stakes (G2)—his first start since a fourth-place finish in the Feb. 29 Saudi Cup. Baffert told Thoroughbred Daily News, which first reported his retirement, that the injury was diagnosed Jan. 5 and would keep him away from a title defense in the Pegasus and a return trip to the Saudi Cup.

"He galloped this morning, and afterwards we noticed some heat in the pastern," Baffert told Racing Post on Tuesday. "Ultrasound showed a small issue in the ligament in the pastern area. 

"With soft tissue problems like this, it takes months of rest and you don't know if they're going to be the same when they come back. The good thing is we caught it early."

A winner of six of 13 starts and more than $3.9 million, Mucho Gusto made the first 10 starts of his career for owner Michael Lund Petersen before he was purchased privately by Prince Faisal Bin Khaled, former governor of the Asir Region of Saudi Arabia and a member of the House of Saud.

Under Petersen's ownership, Mucho Gusto won the Bob Hope Stakes (G3) at 2, and the Robert B. Lewis Stakes (G3), Lazaro Barrera Stakes (G3), and Affirmed Stakes (G3) at 3. Also during that period, he placed in three top-level stakes, finishing second in the 2018 Los Alamitos Cash Call Futurity (G1) and running second and third, respectively, in the TVG.com Haskell Invitational Stakes (G1) and Runhappy Travers Stakes (G1) in 2019.

He competed for his new ownership beginning with the 2020 Pegasus, a race he won by 4 1/2 lengths over Mr Freeze. The Pegasus was the defining moment of his career.

His two final races resulted in small margins of defeat, a 2 3/4-length loss in the Saudi Cup to Maximum Security  and a 2 1/2-length loss to Kiss Today Goodbye when returning from a 10-month layoff in the San Antonio.

Bred in Kentucky by Teneri Farm and Bernardo Alvarez Calderon, Mucho Gusto is one of five foals and the lone stakes winner from the Giant's Causeway mare Itsagiantcauseway. The dam's two youngest foals, 3-year-old colt Campeador (by Jack Milton ) and newly turned 2-year-old filly Gracias (by Alpha) are unraced.

Mucho Gusto made several trips through the sales ring, the last when he was purchased by Petersen for $625,000 from the consignment of Kirkwood Stables to the 2018 Fasig-Tipton Midlantic 2-Year-Olds in Training Sale. 

Baffert told TDN and other news outlets that no stallion deal has yet been finalized.