HANDICAPPING INSIGHTS
AUGUST 25, 2012
by Dick Powell
Just how good is Frankel? I had some doubts through his first 12 wins when he
was beating modest company going no farther than a mile while staying at home in
Great Britain. Undefeated and unchallenged, the negative was that Sir Henry
Cecil had not sent the Juddmonte runner out looking for new horizons but seemed
content to stay home and beat the same horses going the same distance.
No matter how fast he ran and how far he won by, there were still some doubts
about Frankel joining the pantheon of horse racing’s immortals.
Then came Wednesday at York in the 10 1/2-furlong, Group 1 Juddmonte
International. Frankel was finally going to leave his comfort zone and try
something new against a field that included Breeders’ Cup Turf and Group 2
Coronation Cup winner St Nicholas Abbey while racing longer than he ever had.
To show you the respect that the other horsemen have for Frankel, Teddy
Grimthorpe, racing manager for Juddmonte, told Racing Post of the
following conversation that he had with St Nicholas Abbey’s owner, John Magnier:
“This is what we are going to do. Our two boys will go on and St Nicholas Abbey
will follow. There would be no funny business.”
So as competitive as Magnier is, and he was going to do everything possible
to help St Nicholas Abbey with two different pacemakers, he was not going to do
anything to hurt Frankel. In a warped way, I wish he had since Frankel’s
Juddmonte International was the proverbial walk in the park but it still gave us
a glimpse into how great he really is.
Tom Queally, Frankel’s regular rider, was content to sit near the rear of the
field while his and Coolmore’s pacemakers did their thing. When the field came
out of the bend and straightened away, there were about three furlongs to run
and Queally sent Frankel to the stand’s side rail to take up his position. Ahead
to his left was Joseph O’Brien aboard St. Nicholas Abbey and in the middle of
the track was Frankie Dettori aboard Farrh in the blue silks of Godolphin.
With about a quarter-mile to go, the three runners, representing the
powerhouses of Juddmonte, Coolmore and Godolphin, were lined up across the track
and all three riders were trying to save their horses before asking them for
their final run. Dettori got into Farhh and O’Brien shook the reins at St
Nicholas Abbey and both looked like they might open up on Frankel.
Queally was sitting motionless on the rail and after his two rivals turned
over their final cards, he showed his. Frankel quickly opened up about five
lengths in about 10 strides and any questions about getting 10 furlongs were not
only answered but it raised a new question about why did we even ask in the
first place?
Frankel, who has won his 13 races by a combined 74 1/2 lengths, won this one
by seven easy lengths. His stretch run had a cartoon-like quality to it as it
looked like his two main rivals were flailing away in quicksand while he raced
on concrete. It’s amazing to watch Group 1 winners fall apart when they can’t
respond to Frankel’s acceleration.
After the race, and now that he showed he can switch off and go virtually any
distance, the options for Frankel’s next race are wide open. The consensus is
that he would run, as planned, in the Group 1 Champions Stakes at 1 1/4 miles at
Ascot in October. The Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe was mentioned but that
one is unlikely.
The crushing blow for American racing is the comment from Grimthorpe after
the Juddmonte International. Once again, he told Racing Post, “Prince
Khalid loves the Breeders’ Cup and we would love to take Frankel to Santa Anita,
Bobby Frankel’s home town — the emotional ties would be fantastic.
“But unfortunately the right race is not there — we are not going to race
him on dirt. It’s a pity, because if they had Polytrack we’d have been there.”
One thing that I don’t think can be disputed is that Galileo is the greatest
sire of all time. His record is phenomenal and Frankel is icing on the cake of
the many Guineas, Derby and Oaks winners he has produced. He might be the
best-bred sire in the world and the gene pool that he passes along has equal
parts of speed and stamina that fit just about any mare’s pedigree.
*****
Sunday’s Grade 1 Pacific Classic came up with a field of 10 for the $1
million purse. What makes it a fascinating handicapping exercise is the presence
of three-year-old Dullahan, who goes back on Polytrack after trying dirt in his
past three starts.
Winner of the Grade 1 Bluegrass Stakes at Keeneland back in April, he rallied
for third going this distance in the Kentucky Derby a month later, which gave
trainer Dale Romans enough confidence to continue on the dirt. He was dull in
the Belmont Stakes on a track that was very dry and sandy, then had no shot
closing on Monmouth Park’s speedy main track in the Grade 1 Haskell
Invitational.
The key to his chances on Sunday are the 10-furlong distance, which seems to
be right up his alley, the return to Polytrack and the six-pound age allowance
he receives. The fact that Del Mar, going two turns, seems to be kind to his
running style helps as well.
I’ve been surprised all month that Bob Baffert is going to run Game on Dude
in the Pacific Classic and did not ship him to Saratoga for the Grade 1 Woodward
next week. It’s almost as if he knew that Richard’s Kid was going to leave his
barn. He’s coming in off a big win the Grade 1 Hollywood Gold Cup going this
distance, but this track just doesn’t set up for him unless he’s allowed to
steal the race on the front end.
Richard’s Kid can run all day and loves this track. He’s been well prepared
for this race by Baffert and will now run for Doug O’Neill’s assistant, Leandro
Mora, who is filling in for the boss while he serves a suspension. It should be
an exciting stretch run with Dullahan getting up in time.
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