Frankel enhanced his status as the best racehorse in the world when coasting to his 11th win from 11 runs in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot today.
Trained by Sir Henry Cecil and ridden by Tom Queally Frankel justified his prohibitive starting price of 10-1 on to win this Group One by 11 lengths from Excelebration.
This was Frankel’s most impressive performance in his remarkable career as he toyed with his 10 rivals with Queally barely moving a muscle to take the opening race of the Royal Ascot festival in splendid isolation.
For Excelebration this was the fourth time Aidan O’Brien’s smart colt has played second fiddle to the equine superstar.
“He is a great horse, you’ve seen it for yourself,” Cecil told the BBC.
“He did exactly how I thought but he’s still improving. Tom (Queally) thought he was getting better, and it looks as though he will stay a mile and a quarter. He’s in the Sussex Stakes (over a mile), the Eclipse and Juddmonte (both over a mile and a quarter), but I don’t tell him what to do, he’ll tell me.”
Breeders Cup unlikely
Cecil, saddling his 74th Royal Ascot winner, added that the Breeders Cup in the United States at the end of the year was an unlikely target.
Queally rated the win Frankel’s best ever.
“It looks like he’s getting better, he settled and travelled and did everything off the bridle,” said the quietly-spoken Irishman.
“He’s amazing, it was his best performance so far, he ticked all the boxes, did everything right.”
