We’ve been
waiting all season for the clash between two of the leading milers in
Europe, Solow and Gleneagles, and it does now look like that match up
will take place on British Champions Day as Gleneagles has been
declared at the 48-hour stage for the contest.
The two horses
were first scheduled to meet at Goodwood in the Sussex Stakes in what
was being billed as the latest Dual on the Downs. However, sadly,
Aidan O’Brien’s runner was pulled out due to ground
concerns. Solow
stayed in the race and won by just under a length
after going off the 2/5 favourite.
Solow is set for
his sixth start of the season on British Champions Day where he has a
100% record in 2015, with notable victories coming in the Dubai Turf,
Prix D’Ispahan, Queen Anne Stakes and Susses Stakes. The
French-trained horse has had a break since Glorious Goodwood and is
likely to go off as favourite at Ascot, even if Gleneagles does
remain in the contest.
The 2015 season
started so well for Gleneagles as he scored in the opening Classic of
the season, the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket where he was ridden to
success by Ryan Moore. He has only once run since then, though,
winning the St James’s Palace Stakes.
Solow v
Gleneagles could go down in the history books as a classic. Here is a
look back at three of the great clashes over the years in horse
racing:-
Arkle v
Mill House – 1964 Cheltenham Gold Cup
Many people
still view the race between Arkle and Mill House in the 1964
Cheltenham Gold Cup as the greatest clash in the history of horse
racing. The match up did not fail to deliver. Arkle, the younger of
the two, was able to beat the former champion as Ireland got the
better of Great Britain in front of a huge audience on TV.
Red Rum
v Crisp – 1973 Grand National
Just like ahead
of the Grand
National 2016 runners, you always hope for a quality
field in the world’s most famous steeplechase - and in 1973 we got
that. Red Rum was fancied to do very well in his first attempt at the
Grand National but if he was to win the race, he had to beat the
Australian champion Crisp who many Down Under felt was a sure thing
for the 4m4f contest.
It turned out to
be an absolute classic as both horses were in contention when passing
the elbow and towards the finishing line. In the end it was Red Rum
who just got up to score for the first of three wins in the Grand
National.
Kauto
Star v Denman - 2008 Cheltenham Gold Cup
Stable mates
Kauto Star and Denman caught the imagination of many outside the
world of horse racing with their clash in the 2008 Cheltenham
Gold Cup. Both had their admirers and opinion was divided about who
was going to win the clash of styles. It was powerful and dominant
Denman who won the race from the front, forcing his races, including
Kauto Star, into submission as they could not live with him in one of
the great Cheltenham Gold Cup runs.