Vous trouverez ici Les Cracks Du Turf articles qui contribuent à mieux comprendre l’univers des courses hippiques et améliorer vos pronostics. Abonnez maintenant et profitez de nos pronostics réservés aux abonneurs!
Frankel – Greenham Stakes
Frankel began his three-year-old season with a victory in the Greenham Stakes at Newbury over seven furlongs. He defeated Excelebration – who went on to win the Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen (German 2000 Guineas) and the Group 1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp that season – by four lengths, showing his customary turn of foot around a furlong from home. Following this race, trainer Henry Cecil insisted that the colt would improve dramatically for the outing before the Newmarket Classic.
The 1-2 favourite for the Newmarket Classic, Frankel started as he meant to go on and won in a remarkable fashion. He scorched clear of his field from the stalls and was a dozen lengths clear at the halfway stage. He then routed his rivals and won by six lengths; a performance that many racegoers say will never be equalled.
Frankel’s success in the Greenham Stakes confirmed him as a true superstar of racing and his victory saw him become the first horse to win all of his races at Group 1 level. He finished his career rated 140, which is the highest rating ever recorded by a horse and was awarded the highest accolade of the British Champion Racehorse on two occasions.
In a year that also saw him win the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, King George VI and Queen Mary Stakes and Sussex Stakes, it’s no exaggeration to say that Frankel was the best three-year-old of his generation. He is arguably the greatest racehorse of all time and is now at stud at Haras de Beaumont.
His son Cracksman was a superb les cracks du turf and won last year’s Dewhurst Stakes before becoming a top-class sire at Banstead Manor. Another of Frankel’s sons, Chaldean, is bidding for a similar future as he takes his chance in Saturday’s Watership Down Stud Too Darn Hot Greenham Stakes at Newbury over 7f. It is one of the key Classic trials and has a rich roll of honour with numerous Group 1 winners amongst its alumni.
Frankel – Queen Elizabeth II Stakes
In a race that has been won by some of the greatest horses in history, Les Cracks Du Turf Frankel produced a performance that is likely to be seen as one of the best ever. The winner of the English 2000 Guineas and St James’s Palace Stakes earlier in the year, Frankel started a big 1-3 favourite for Saturday’s Queen Elizabeth II Stakes. HRH The Queen is expected to be present at the event and if Frankel lives up to expectations then it will be his ninth Group 1 victory in a row.
The gelding, trained by Henry Cecil and ridden in all his races by Tom Queally, began his two-year-old season in a maiden race at Newmarket over one mile on soft ground. Held up early on by Queally, he made headway over two furlongs out and went clear inside the final furlong to beat John Gosden’s future King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner Nathaniel by half a length.
He repeated the feat in the Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket over ten furlongs, beating his old rival Excelebration with ease. He then finished off his three-year-old campaign by securing a comfortable win in the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood in July.
That performance earned him the highest rating of his career from Timeform, which gave him a figure of 142, the fourth-highest since the organisation’s inception. The gelding has been a dominant force in the world of Flat racing this year and is currently on course to become a leading sire Les Cracks Du Turf.
This weekend’s Queen Elizabeth II Stakes will be Les Cracks Du Turf Frankel’s first race since the Sussex. He is a hugely popular horse and is likely to receive an enthusiastic reception from the crowds. He will be hoping to emulate the successes of previous winners such as Brigadier Gerard, Tudor Minstrel and Sea Bird. He is also a strong contender for next year’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and the Lockinge Stakes.
Frankel – St. James’s Palace Stakes
Frankel, the world’s greatest racehorse, has become a remarkable success at stud. The former champion was crowned leading sire at Royal Ascot this week after three winners and two second-placed runners. He is one of the best-performing stallions in Europe and is well on his way to matching his legendary father Galileo’s accomplishments. He is also fast approaching the elite status of other legendary sires such as Dubawi and Galileo’s son Powerscourt Les Cracks Du Turf.
The highlight of the week came in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes when Frankel dominated a top-class field. The race was the most important of the four-year-old’s season. Trainer Henry Cecil had targeted the race as a preparation for the 2000 Guineas. It was a highly impressive win with Frankel effortlessly breaking his opponents apart with a burst of speed.
However, this was a different race Les Cracks Du Turf the previous year’s Group 1 renewal when Excelebration was unable to get close enough to challenge for victory. The race was run over a mile and a quarter and saw a strong eight-horse field take to the track. The other contenders included the Coronation Stakes winner Poet’s Voice and the Prix du Moulin de Longchamp and Jacques Le Marois winners Strong Suit and Worthadd.
In the early stages of the race, Frankel tracked his pacemaker Bullet Train who led by three lengths. The favourite stayed close to the leaders before moving into the lead a furlong from home. The horse went on to win by four lengths with Excelebration and Zoffany filling the minor places Les Cracks Du Turf.
The win marked a significant milestone for the racehorse as it was his third consecutive Group 1 victory. He had won the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood on his previous appearance before making it a double by winning the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot. In the latter race, Frankel started at odds of 1/20 against a small field and quickly asserted his dominance in the final stages of the race. He drew clear of Excelebration and was ridden by Tom Queally, who is undefeated on him this season.
Les Cracks Du Turf Frankel – St. Nicholas Abbey Stakes
After conquering the mile division, Les Cracks Du Turf Frankel aims for new frontiers in a race sponsored by his owner and breeder Prince Khalid Abdulla. The Galileo colt faces a strong field in the Juddmonte International Stakes over one and a quarter miles, which includes multiple Group 1 winner St Nicholas Abbey from Aidan O’Brien and Planteur, another Group 1-winning filly from the John Gosden yard.
The race has been won by some of the most legendary horses in recent times including St Nicholas Abbey, who won it in 2009 and 2010, and Canford Cliffs, who won it in 2012. But if any horse is capable of making a mark in the history books this year, it’s Frankel, who is looking to extend his unbeaten record over this distance Les Cracks Du Turf.
In his only other outing over this length this season, the world-class colt was made the prohibitive 1-7 favourite in the Greenham Stakes at Newbury on 16 April. But he made light work of the opposition and was sent straight to the lead at the start of the straight and won with a margin that could have been even greater.
On that occasion, Tom Queally patiently rode Les Cracks Du Turf Frankel and the colt cruised into the lead from seventh place before powering clear of his rivals to win by seven lengths. He was a picture of elegance as he swept past St Nicholas Abbey and the fast-finishing Godolphin colt Farhh in a race that saw St Nicolas Abbey finish third to Nathaniel and Danedream.
But that was just a warm-up for the Sussex Stakes, where he was set to face a much tougher test in the presence of stablemate and former race winner Twice Over, plus a trio of Les Cracks Du Turf rivals in the shape of St Nicholas Abbey, Les Cracks Du Turf Planteur and Cirrus Des Aigles. It’s hard to see any of them posing a serious threat, however, because the mighty Frankel seems to have a natural ability to make all his opponents look like also-rans. And that is a rare skill. This is the kind of horse that lifts barriers within the sport, not just in terms of overcoming distance limitations Les Cracks Du Turf.
