Reigning Melbourne Cup and Phoenix champion Explicit will make a shock comeback to racing at Sandown this Thursday night.

Just months after retiring from racing following his triumphant Phoenix win at The Meadows in late December, Explicit will be back at the races this Thursday night in a $9000 free-for-all at Sandown Park, in a stunning second coming.

His champion trainer Jason Thompson said the 2023-24 Victorian Sprinter of the Year would continue stud duties, but six trials leading into Thursday night had indicated the three-year-old was thriving back in work.

“At home, he was just going through the motions, so I thought I’d give him a trial to see if that sparked him up,” Thompson said.

“One he started trialling again, he was collecting really well. All of his trials have been up to where I’d expect them. He’s had six trials, he’s very fit but he’ll need the run on Thursday.

“I’ve got a plan in my head, but it all depends on Thursday night.”

Explicit retired from racing on a high with a stunning win of the $1.65 million Phoenix in December, which came off the back of a Melbourne Cup victory just three weeks earlier.

Thompson said he wasn’t going to put any pressure on Explicit to perform, but everything indicated the son of Bernardo would relish juggling stud duties with racing.

“I’ve had a lot of dogs that wouldn’t be able to race and perform stud duties,” he said.

“The dog didn’t retire due to injury. He had a hectic 12 months. He needed the time off, but I didn’t plan on racing him again.

“We kept him in work and he was still working really good.

“The dog’s got nothing to prove. He just loves racing and we’re only going to target the better races following Thursday.”

Explicit, a winner of 27 of his 37 career starts, has drawn box eight in the free-for-all, worth $6100 to the winner, with Buddy Monelli among the field.