Wednesday 15 June 2011

Cecil Talks About Frankel's Win At Royal Ascot


In a completely different type of race to the 2000 Guineas, the Galileo colt retained his 100 per cent record with a seventh career triumph.


At Newmarket, Prince Khalid Abdulla’s Frankel had blitzed them from the front but here Rerouted, running in the same colours, went on fast from the gates.


Jockey Tom Queally went off in pursuit just inside the half-mile and used Frankel’s long stride to collar Rerouted approaching 3f out.


Cecil’s charge soon had opened up a considerable advantage on his rivals. But that gap was substantially closed in the closing strides as Zoffany threw down a late challenge.


It wasn’t as convincing a success as some of Frankel’s, but he’d still got the job done.


Cecil said: “Any win at Royal Ascot is lovely. That was a bit nerve-wracking and it didn’t go to plan. The plan was to go just before the bend - like the Royal Lodge when he sprinted away.”


Cecil hinted that the bay had probably idled late on, having raced alone for quite a long time.

He said: “Now he is getting wiser and he thought he had the race won, rather like in the Guineas. Last year he ran all the way to the line, but today - like at Newmarket - he knew he’d won his race very early and done enough. He wasn’t at all tired. He just thought he had done enough.”