Fourth Dimension, the 2017 Dan Patch Award winner for best two-year-old male trotter, will miss the remainder of this season because of a small fracture on his left knee, trainer Marcus Melander said Monday. Fourth Dimension last raced on Aug. 4 in an elimination for the Hambletonian and went off stride following the half-mile point.

Melander said the colt will require four months to recover from the injury. He said no decision was made yet regarding Fourth Dimension’s future.

This year, Fourth Dimension was winless in four races. He finished second in his seasonal debut, then went off stride in the final turn of his elimination for the Earl Beal Jr. Memorial. He went off stride again in his division of the Stanley Dancer Memorial and the Hambletonian.

“It’s very disappointing, but there is nothing we can do about it other than give it time to heal,” Melander said. “It was a very small fracture, which is probably why we didn’t find it before. After [the Beal] he wasn’t himself. He was fine when we trained him at home, but when he was going faster there was something bothering him more than just soreness. We went over him and couldn’t find anything. Sometimes those small fractures take time before you can see them. We took him again and did a complete bone scan on him and they found it. I’m glad we found it.”

Fourth Dimension is a son of Chapter Seven out of Corazon Blue Chip. He was purchased for $200,000 under the name Seventh Wonder at the 2016 Lexington Selected Sale and his family includes Dan Patch Award winner Magician. The colt is owned by Anders Strom’s Courant Inc.

Last year, Fourth Dimension won eight of 11 races, setting or equaling four track records in the process. His victories included the Valley Victory Stakes, a division of the International Stallion Stakes, an elimination for the Breeders Crown, and four divisions of the New York Sire Stakes. He has earned $409,195 lifetime.

“We’ll see what Anders wants to do,” Melander said. “There should be some interest in him as a stud. He had a great year last year and he’s got a great pedigree and is a good-looking horse. If he wants to stand him as a stud, he can do that; if he wants to race him next year, he can do that too. He’s got options. We’ve got a couple months before anything needs to be decided.”

This story courtesy of Harness Racing Communications, a division of the U.S. Trotting Association. For more information, visit www.ustrotting.com.