Written by Adam Dobbin, The Greyhound Recorder.

Jason Thompson has handed Explicit the ultimate accolade following news the champion sprinter has run his last race and won’t defend his The Phoenix title.

“He’s the best all round dog I’ve ever trained – a champion in every sense of the word,” Thompson declared.

“I heard David Hayes say after Ka Ying Rising won The Everest that he’s the best horse he’s trained and look at some of the champions he’s had over the years.

“I’ve trained some great dogs over the past 40 years but I can say Explicit sits above them all.

“A really special dog in every possible way.”

Thompson had hoped to return Explicit to the track for a grand goodbye in a defence of the $1.65m The Phoenix at The Meadows on December 13.

But those plans were thrown into disarray after pulling up injured in a heat of the Group 2 Bendigo Cup on October 5.

“I said when it happened that if we had a minor setback along the way we wouldn’t get there and that’s how it played out,” Thompson said.

“You can’t beat the clock and we’ve run out of time but that’s the way it goes.

“We were never going to have him there if he wasn’t 100 per cent because he’s got absolutely nothing left to prove.”

Explicit retires as the winner at 35 of his 49 race starts with $2.1 million banked in prize money.

His Hall of Fame level career saw him win seven Group races, including three at Group 1 level during a spectacular 2024 season, annexing the Temlee, Melbourne Cup and The Phoenix, all in spectacular fashion.

Such was his dominance, the prolific winner was crowned both Australian and Victorian Greyhound of the Year.

It was after his 2024 The Phoenix heroics that Thompson initially retired the son of Bernardo to stud, before returning to the track in March ahead of another assault on the Dream Chasers Festival.

“That’s the mark of the dog – to return and race the way he did while basically being full time at stud,” Thompson said.

“He’s been at stud for only 11 months and served 102 bitches which would have to be some kind of record.

“I doubt there’s another dog that could do what he’s done on and off the track at the same time.”

With Explicit set to miss The Phoenix, Awesome Lodge are on the hunt for a representative in the $1.65m blockbuster.

“We’ll make a call officially in the next 48 hours,” Thompson said.

“We’ve been working on a contingency in the case that Explicit didn’t get to the race so we’ll move down that road now.”