THERE was a reminder this week of why we should all make the most of every day as we remembered Sir Henry Cecil on the seventh anniversary of his passing.
And, with Royal Ascot just around the corner, I thought it would be fun to go down memory lane with some of the legendary trainer’s great moments at the meeting.
We must start with the horse everyone will remember Sir Henry for, the mighty Frankel, arguably the greatest thoroughbred of all time.
Frankel went to Royal Ascot twice for Cecil, landing the 2011 St James’s Palace Stakes and 2012 Queen Anne, both Group 1s.
Frankel appeared to struggle in the former, having to chase down a strong gallop set by Rerouted before holding off Zoffany by three-quarters of a length.
The Queen Anne, on the other hand, was an awesome procession.
Yes, Frankel was a 1-10 shot, but to smash up Excelebration by 11 lengths had to be seen to be believed. Incredibly he ran the penultimate furlong in 10.58 sec, which equates to a top speed of 42mph, despite having lost a shoe.
Cecil won five Queen Annes, his first coming with Belmont Bay in 1981 followed by Mr Fluorocarbon, Valiyar and Trojan Fen. And his St James’s Palace quintet was completed by Bolkonski, Kris, Shavian and Dr Fong.
The Prince of Wales’s Stakes was good to Cecil, and there’s no doubt his 1997 heroine Bosra Sham was brilliant on her day, albeit it was a Group 2 in those days.
Bosra Sham had landed the 1,000 Guineas the previous year and at Ascot was huge, taking the lead two furlongs out under Kieren Fallon before pulling eight lengths clear. At the time, Cecil claimed she was the best he had trained.
When it came to the Gold Cup, Cecil banged in five winners, including Le Moss twice, Ardross twice and Paean.
Ardross was a legend, finishing second in the 1980 Gold Cup before hacking up the next year and finishing fifth in the Arc from a horrid draw.
In 1982 Ardross won at odds of 1-5 in the Gold Cup and was second to Akiyda — beaten just a head — in the Arc. A special stayer. Cecil lit up Ascot, and Ascot was very Sir Henry Cecil. His love of fashion made him a perfect match with the occasion.
Of course next week there will be no fashion, as Royal Ascot takes place behind closed doors live on ITV and Sky Sports Racing.
On Tuesday, many eyes will be on Circus Maximus in the Queen Anne, as he tries to follow up his St James’s Palace Stakes success from 2019 despite once looking sure to need nearly two miles.
Many will side with Frankly Darling should she go in the Ribblesdale. John Gosden’s inmate hacked up at Newcastle the other day.
I went to see Battaash yesterday, and he is primed for the King’s Stand. We all know with Battaash if he brings his A-game he’ll be very hard to stop. I hope he does, he’s electric when on song.
O’Brien probably holds the key to the Prince of Wales’s Stakes with Japan, who has long been the apple of Ryan Moore’s eye, while the Gold Cup promises to be a huge smash up between Stradivarius, the defending champion looking for three straight wins. It’s just a shame Kew Gardens won’t be there to put it up to him.
Plenty will like the look of the progressive Pierre Lapin in the Commonwealth Cup, while the St James’s Palace gives Pinatubo the chance to redeem his reputation after his Guineas third.
It’s hard to know whether Pinatubo was disappointing at Newmarket, as the time was strong, but he couldn’t dominate in the same way he did last season.
I keep the faith in Pinatubo, as there were moments in the Guineas when he still looked a machine.
So, there’s no Sir Henry Cecil, no racegoers and no fashion at Royal Ascot in 2020 — but there’s still so much to look forward to.
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