Lost And Running, a one-time The Everest (1200m) second favourite, has been retired.

Trainer John O’Shea elected to bring down the curtain on his star sprinter’s racing career following his disappointing last-placed finish in last Saturday’s Gr.2 Premiere Stakes (1200m) at Randwick, a race he won last year.

“Lost And Running has run his last race. We have decided to retire him. He has been such a great horse for our stable,” O’Shea said.

“The fact that he just didn’t give his best on Saturday tells us that he is ready for a new career and as a result we are going to retire him effective immediately.

“He is a very popular horse with a great attitude, and he will make a fantastic friend and companion for someone.

“We look forward to following him in the future.”

The son of Per Incanto won nine of his 21 starts, including the Premiere Stakes, Gr.3 Southern Cross Stakes (1200m), Listed Luskin Star Stakes (1300m), and A$1 million The Hunter (1300m), accruing more than A$4.3 million in prizemoney.

The seven-year-old gelding was one of the favoured runners heading into last year’s A$15 million The Everest, a race he finished fourth in 2021, but O’Shea was forced to scratch the gelding on race morning after he failed a veterinary examination.

Lost And Running was bred by JML Bloodstock’s Lib Petagna and raised at Blandford Lodge in Matamata. Petagna retained an interest in the six-year-old gelding, who raced in the colours of Carl Holt, with partners including Frank and Christine Cook and O’Shea’s wife Isabel.