We’ve been blessed with some fantastic racehorses over the last few years, and continue to be so at the time of writing.
Having always thought of myself as more of a jumps man, it is only in the last three years or so I’ve really got in to my flat racing, and even if we only take in to account those last three years we still have a glittering array of horses and performances to mark this as a truly golden age.
With that in mind I decided to count down ten flat performances from the last 3 years or so that really stand out as special, and in some cases have stuck in the memory for quite some time.
In all honesty, probably the one performance on this list that I didn’t actual enjoy at the time, given that I’d backed almost every other horse in the field in last year’s Arc.
Severely underestimated by many going in to the race Danedream completely blitzed a high class field to score with ease. Now the bitterness has had time to subside there’s no denying this was a performance of the highest order, and anyone in any doubt about Danedream’s ability even after this Arc win was put firmly in their place when she landed the King George recently.
She’s now won both of Europe’s premier middle distance races and who’s to say she won’t achieve more still, but even if she does it’ll be a hell of a performance if she ever tops her Arc win.
9. Hoof It – Steward’s Cup 2011
In a list of Group 1 races this entry probably sticks out like a sore thumb given that it’s a handicap sprint race. But anyone who watched last year’s Steward’s Cup surely wouldn’t begrudge Hoof It’s incredible weight-carrying performance at Goodwood a spot on this list.
Under top weight and carrying a penalty for his win in the SkyBet Dash at York a week earlier Hoof It had been enjoying a fine season and in spite of his burden was sent off joint favourite and duly made a mockery of his handicap mark by storming home 2 ½ lengths clear.
After this race Hoof It made his way in to Group races where he has so far come up short but there’s no denying he’s clearly Group class and took full advantage of perhaps being underestimated by the handicapper last season.
When landing the Steward’s Cup last year Hoof It produced a handicap display rarely seen and ran to a Timeform figure of 128, almost enough to put him in and amongst the top ten horses in the world and for that reason I feel this performance is more than worthy of it’s place among these far more illustrious races.
8. Sea The Stars - Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe 2009
Through no fault of his own Sea The Stars has an air of resentment about him now due to being taken from us after his classic season and sent off to stud.
When he was at his peak though during 2009 he was the darling of the flat world and swept aside all challengers with ease. After landing the 2000 Guineas, The Derby, the Eclipse, The Juddmonte International and the Irish Champion Stakes it was off to France for the Arc and he was duly sent off the odds on favourite.
It was far from an easy ride for regular jockey Mick Kinane getting bumped early on and then looking short of space when things started to get serious, but as soon as he got room it was over in a matter of strides and the legend of Sea The Stars was well and truly cemented.
7. Goldikova – Breeder’s Cup Mile 2010
I’ve always had a soft spot for Goldikova and she’s given us some fantastic big race memories over the years, both in victory and defeat but this is by far my favourite race of hers.
The Americans loved a bit of Goldi and she was all the rage as she attempted to make history and win a Breeder’s Cup race for the third time and in doing so defend her own crown for the second successive year.
Always prominent throughout as they rounded Churchill’s final bend regular partner Olivier Peslier pushed her to the front and Goldikova left her opposition trailing in her slipstream to land a famous victory and in the process her twelfth victory at Group 1 level.
Her bold attempt at a fourth straight win the following year may have ended in heartbreak but for me her 2010 American adventure will always be the highlight of a glittering career.
6. Zenyatta – Breeder’s Cup Classic 2009
Like Goldikova, Zenyatta was another lady I always had a soft spot for and of her 19 incredible wins it is her success over the boys in the Breeder’s Cup showpiece in 2009 that remains my fondest memory.
Again, as with Goldikova the final memory people have of Zenyatta might be a defeat at Churchill Downs, but one year earlier she proved many doubters wrong by coming from way of the pace to beat a field of high class horses from across the globe.
Zenyatta truly was a special horse and it’s a shame her career ended in defeat amid such controversy but at the end of 2009 if you ask me there was no better horse in training, male or female.
5. St. Nicholas Abbey - Racing Post Trophy 2009
The only two-year-old performance to feature, but perhaps one of the most breath-taking. St. Nicholas Abbey became a horse with such buzz about him after this performance that he was never going to be able to live up to the hype.
That just goes to show how impressive his effortless win in the 2009 Racing Post Trophy was. At the time the way in which he quickened was just jaw-dropping and the race was won in a matter of strides.
It was a performance I watched over and over again that winter eagerly awaiting his return at three; and although he’s never quite lived up to everyone’s expectations since, although he has certainly started to go the right way in the last twelve months, it remains one of the most impressive two-year-old performances I’ve seen to this day.
4. Pour Moi – Epsom Derby 2011
In fairness a lot of this performance’s greatness should be attributed to the prodigious jockey Mickael Barzalona who all but committed treason by winning the 2011 Derby in such a boastful manner with the Queen’s runner struggling away back in third.
However the achievement of the horse cannot be underestimated and Pour Moi’s sweeping drive under the most confident of rides to go from last to first and snatch victory in the dying strides is a performance that will be remembered for years to come.
Sadly the horse would never race again after his classic win but it only takes one race to create a legend and the team of Barzalona and Pour Moi certainly achieved that status just over twelve months ago.
WATCH - Epsom Derby 2011
WATCH - Epsom Derby 2011
3. Frankel - Queen Anne Stakes 2012
There’s not much I can say about Frankel that hasn’t already been said ad infinitum, he’s quite simply the most exceptional race horse the world has ever, and is ever, likely to see.
There are some fabulous horses on this list, but none of them even come close to Frankel.
He was exceptional at three but words don’t even begin to do justice to how good he’s been at four and this race in particular holds a special place in my heart given I was there to witness his destruction of the best milers the world could muster up to take him on.
The way he powered clear of the field who were all toiling away behind him was spectacular and an eleven length winning margin at a mile we’ll do well to ever see again in this lifetime, on the strength of this performance his projected odds of 1/20 for the Sussex Stakes next month look too big.
2. Harbinger - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes 2010
It’s a toss-up for me between Montjeu’s 2000 win in the King George and Harbinger’s demolition job in 2010 when it comes to selecting the greatest ever performance in the summer showpiece.
But in the last three years, were it not for a certain freak of nature we’ll get back to in a minute, Harbinger would have well and truly set the bar by which all flat racing performances are judged.
Going in to the race no one was denying he was a good horse, but I don’t think anyone quite thought he was exceptional, that quickly changed however.
Not to pull any punches but Harbinger was effectively Sir Michael Stoute’s second string this day, Ryan Moore had deserted him for Derby winner Workforce and Olivier Peslier had been drafted in for the ride.
Harbinger certainly didn’t run like a second string though as he absolutely destroyed a small but select field of Europe’s finest and became the best horse in the world (at the time) in the process.
That wide shot of him storming clear of the good horses he made to look like amateurs remains an iconic image, and as with so many others on this list, is an unforgettable highlight of a career that sadly ended too soon and in rather less spectacular fashion.
1. Frankel - 2000 Guineas 2011
What else is there to say really? The race that dropped a million jaws. We already knew Frankel was going to be something special by this point but no one was quite prepared for just how special.
Just watch, admire and bask in awe of the greatest race horse the world has ever seen.
So there you have it, ten performances for the ages from just the last three years alone; but now I want to know what you think – do you agree? Disagree? And if so who have I missed deserving of a place on this list? Let me know in the comments section below.
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