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Duel on the Downs - Frankel v Canford Cliffs
East Coast Racing
burntcaviar
103 posts
2011 Sussex Stakes, Wed 27th July
Frankel v Canford Cliffs

Betfair Odds
Frankel $1.96
Canford Cliffs $2.26
There has been a huge vibe about the Goodwood carnival in 2011 with horse racing in the UK taking centre stage after a highly successful Royal Ascot Carnival.
There?s no doubt that one race in particular is sparking massive public interest, the 2011 Sussex Stakes.
The one mile contest is always a favourite on the English racing calendar but with a virtual match race between two in form champions this could be the biggest one yet.
The unbeaten Frankel will take on the barnstorming Canford Cliffs after they both completed a successful showing at Ascot.
It continues a string of recent battles, all of which have lived up to the expectations of punters and delivered some wonderful spectacles.
The likes of Rewilding running down So You Think in the Prince of Wales Stakes after he left for home with more than 3 furlongs remaining.
The comeback when So You Think bounced back to beat Workforce in the Coral Eclipse Stakes.
Even at the start of the carnival when Canford Cliffs himself overcame the French star Goldikova in the opening event.
At Goodwood on Wednesday July 25 though the stage is set for potentially the best one yet, it could well be history in the making and go down as one of the greatest ever in UK racing history.
To put into perspective just how good these runners are, both are being touted as the best horses every for their respective trainers.
That?s no easy feat given one belongs to Richard Hannon and the other Sir Henry Cecil.
Between the pair they?ve been training for almost a full century.
Canford Cliffs is the more proven performer, his wins have come at open class level for years now, in fact he?s been a champion during the last three Royal Ascot carnivals.
That?s not to say he?s showing any signs of slowing up though, his turn of foot is stronger than ever and there?s no doubt he?ll run out a super strong final furlong.
Hannon doesn?t shy away from spruiking his horse either, he knows he?s good and he?s willing to tell just about anyone who asks.
?He?s a brilliant horse, something quite extraordinary. He?s got so much class. His win at Ascot last month, when he beat Goldikova, summed it up really.?
?On the day, nothing would have beaten him,? Hughes said.
Against him though is the up and coming three-year-old Frankel, he?s rated alongside Australian super mare Black Caviar as the best in the world and he?s yet to taste defeat.
It?s not just the fact he?s winning either, it?s the way he?s doing it with massive gaps between him and the field shaming his rivals.
No race showed this better than the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket.
Jockey Tom Queally immediately took him to the front and at the halfway point it was as good as game over as he strode 15 lengths clear.
The final winning margin was six lengths but you get the feeling it could have been more if they had wanted to.
Having said that he did show a little sign of weakness in his last start, that?s if you can find any weakness in another Group 1 win.
In the St James Palace Stakes he once again went to the front early and set up a big lead as he turned into the straight.
He did begin to labour about a furlong form home though and that will give the Canford Cliffs camp a fair bit of confidence, especially given their horse has such good closing speed.
With that in mind the true battle in the 2011 Sussex Stakes is the battle of tactics.
It?s seems unlikely Frankel will be sent so far from home again however at the same time they may not want to have Canford Cliffs too close either.
Timing is absolutely everything for both horses and in the end it could well come down to which jockey gives the better ride on the day.
Whatever happens you can guarantee a fascinating race and one which could be considered one of the classic mile events for decades to come.
Chose your team, whether it be the unbeaten young upstart or the proven seasoned performer and get behind them in the 2011 Sussex Stakes.
Frankel v Canford Cliffs

Betfair Odds
Frankel $1.96
Canford Cliffs $2.26
There has been a huge vibe about the Goodwood carnival in 2011 with horse racing in the UK taking centre stage after a highly successful Royal Ascot Carnival.
There?s no doubt that one race in particular is sparking massive public interest, the 2011 Sussex Stakes.
The one mile contest is always a favourite on the English racing calendar but with a virtual match race between two in form champions this could be the biggest one yet.
The unbeaten Frankel will take on the barnstorming Canford Cliffs after they both completed a successful showing at Ascot.
It continues a string of recent battles, all of which have lived up to the expectations of punters and delivered some wonderful spectacles.
The likes of Rewilding running down So You Think in the Prince of Wales Stakes after he left for home with more than 3 furlongs remaining.
The comeback when So You Think bounced back to beat Workforce in the Coral Eclipse Stakes.
Even at the start of the carnival when Canford Cliffs himself overcame the French star Goldikova in the opening event.
At Goodwood on Wednesday July 25 though the stage is set for potentially the best one yet, it could well be history in the making and go down as one of the greatest ever in UK racing history.
To put into perspective just how good these runners are, both are being touted as the best horses every for their respective trainers.
That?s no easy feat given one belongs to Richard Hannon and the other Sir Henry Cecil.
Between the pair they?ve been training for almost a full century.
Canford Cliffs is the more proven performer, his wins have come at open class level for years now, in fact he?s been a champion during the last three Royal Ascot carnivals.
That?s not to say he?s showing any signs of slowing up though, his turn of foot is stronger than ever and there?s no doubt he?ll run out a super strong final furlong.
Hannon doesn?t shy away from spruiking his horse either, he knows he?s good and he?s willing to tell just about anyone who asks.
?He?s a brilliant horse, something quite extraordinary. He?s got so much class. His win at Ascot last month, when he beat Goldikova, summed it up really.?
?On the day, nothing would have beaten him,? Hughes said.
Against him though is the up and coming three-year-old Frankel, he?s rated alongside Australian super mare Black Caviar as the best in the world and he?s yet to taste defeat.
It?s not just the fact he?s winning either, it?s the way he?s doing it with massive gaps between him and the field shaming his rivals.
No race showed this better than the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket.
Jockey Tom Queally immediately took him to the front and at the halfway point it was as good as game over as he strode 15 lengths clear.
The final winning margin was six lengths but you get the feeling it could have been more if they had wanted to.
Having said that he did show a little sign of weakness in his last start, that?s if you can find any weakness in another Group 1 win.
In the St James Palace Stakes he once again went to the front early and set up a big lead as he turned into the straight.
He did begin to labour about a furlong form home though and that will give the Canford Cliffs camp a fair bit of confidence, especially given their horse has such good closing speed.
With that in mind the true battle in the 2011 Sussex Stakes is the battle of tactics.
It?s seems unlikely Frankel will be sent so far from home again however at the same time they may not want to have Canford Cliffs too close either.
Timing is absolutely everything for both horses and in the end it could well come down to which jockey gives the better ride on the day.
Whatever happens you can guarantee a fascinating race and one which could be considered one of the classic mile events for decades to come.
Chose your team, whether it be the unbeaten young upstart or the proven seasoned performer and get behind them in the 2011 Sussex Stakes.
Comments
Much of the pre-race discussion has centred on the manner in which Frankel will be ridden, particularly as the unbeaten three-year-old has raced differently on all three starts this season.
Held up on his seasonal debut at Newbury, he then went on to blitz the field with an amazing display of front-running at Newmarket before only just holding on at Ascot after an astonishing mid-race manoeuvre by Queally.
"Every race is run differently," Cecil told At The Races. "We will try and have a plan but we will need to have an alternative,because if things don't pan out, we'll need a back-up plan.
"We won't do what we did in the 2,000 Guineas, that's for sure. We'll discuss the best thing to, the jockey knows the horse and we will discuss the plan and the alternatives, but then it's up to him."
Billed by many as the race of the season, the Sussex Stakes will pit Frankel, the star of the Classic generation, against the year older Canford Cliffs, whose five Group 1 victories include this race last year.
At this stage CC, Frankel,Rajsaman and Rio de la Plata.
Sir Henry Cecil has suggested Frankel has the potential to be the best horse he has ever trained.
After seven victories from seven starts, including a brilliant display in the 2000 Guineas and a near record Timeform rating, that theory has plenty of weight.
The three-year-old however, is likely to face the toughest task of his career as he meets his elders, headed by Richard Hannon's outstanding 4YO Canford Cliffs, winner of the Sussex Stakes 12 months ago.
Like Cecil, Hannon believes his four-year-old is the best horse to have ever passed through his hands.
He will arrive at Goodwood off the back of a brilliant victory over champion French mare Goldikova in the G1 Queen Anne at Royal Ascot.
The betting suggests the one-mile Sussex Stakes will be a virtual match race with most bookmakers making Frankel marginal favourite as he will carry 8lb less than Canford Cliffs.
With most of the opposition frightened off by the 'big two' just two other runners have been declared.
Goldikova's trainer Freddie Head has decided to send Rajsaman from France, while Godolphin's Rio De La Plata completes the small field.
www.racingandsports.com.au
Canford Cliffs for me
You would start arguments with yourself Piston.
Also on the program a Group 2 with just seven runners and all of them are entires. One Trainer has four runners in this race.
I think World Championship Wrestling has more credablility.
Would far prefer to see this than to have a field made up of a number of no hopers who only get in the way and could have an affect on the result.
I may have a go at the quartet :lol:
Will be a boring race until the straight.
Just because a stallion shuttles, that alone does not make him good. Safe to say that some will become permanent residents after a season or two, and that is a strong indication of their real worth.
For me I love the mine of information that is now at my fingertips, anyone who takes "Gr 1" success on face value is being careless.
Personal opinion only. Everyone has the entitlement to arrive at whatever breeding decisions they wish to make.
I give them a bit more credit than you do
everyone talks about this and that race being a weak Group 1 - surely breeders also can see this
What happens if there are only 4 or 5 runners in the Winterbottom, sorry race cancelled due to lack of acceptances :roll:
What a horse.
Timeform ratings are irrelevant
Frankel easily shook off the challenge of Canford Cliffs in the stretch in one of the most anticipated matchups in British racing in years.
?He?s absolutely amazing. I?ve said it before?he?s a freak,? winning jockey Tom Queally said. ?He made the other horses look ordinary and they are very good horses. It?s a fantastic day.?
The 3-year-old colt is named for Hall of Fame trainer Bobby Frankel, who died in 2009.
Trained by Henry Cecil, Frankel was sent off as the 8-13 favorite in the field of four and led from the start of the one-mile race.
?I think he?s the best I?ve ever seen,? Cecil said of the horse co-ranked No. 1 with Australia?s Black Caviar by the World Thoroughbred Rankings.
The 4-year-old Canford Cliffs had won five in a row coming into the race, including a victory over champion Goldikova in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot last month.
Richard Hannon, who trains Canford Cliffs, said the downhill finish at Goodwood didn?t suit his horse.
?We?ll have to go home and rethink it, but I?m sure it?s the racecourse. That wasn?t his run,? Hannon said. ?Either Frankel is just unbeatable or we should have been closer.?
The winner earned $280,000 to boost his bankroll to $1.31 million.
So he's beaten 3yo's and now won a 4 horse track gallop and has a Timeform rating of 142. They have their hands superglued to their knobs!
Now talking of the Juddmonte over 2100m. Well lets hope he gets more than 3 to race against and it's not another track gallop of evens to the turn and sprint up the straight.....
very good horse, yes. But best in the world......time will tell.
Lets see him win a Breeders Cup, Cox Plate or some other elite race around the world first :snooty: