Reigning Melbourne Cup winner Prince Of Penzance will not race in this year’s Cup Carnival – and may never race again – after fracturing a leg at Caulfield on Saturday.

The seven-year-old fan favourite was the fairytale of last year’s Spring Carnival, ridden home by the first woman to win a Melbourne Cup, Michelle Payne.

But at Caulfield on Saturday news of the injury filtered through after Prince of Penzance finished fourth in the Herbert Power Stakes.

Trainer Darren Weir said the horse would require surgery in which screws would be inserted in the offside foreleg.

“He’ll come through it really well,” Weir told the Herald Sun. “Hopefully he can recover well and who knows what will happen from there.”

Horse Injury: 08-10-2016 Caulfield R2 – No.1 Prince of Penzance – suffered injury to off fore, requires sugery. Out for the spring

— RVStewards (@RVStewards) October 8, 2016

Payne, who is now a trainer as well as a jockey, was devastated upon learning of the injury to her favourite horse.

“I’m upset, I’m hoping the horse will be OK,” she said. “That’s the main thing … as long as the horse is OK.”