Five Things We Learned At Royal Ascot

Last week’s Flat Racing bonanza at Ascot will live long in the memory for a few reasons and in this betting blog I take a look back at what we learned from all the top class action we were treated to.

1. Where else can I start but with Frankel! The performance he put up to slam old foe Excelebration and co. by 11 lengths was truly astounding. Going into this race I knew he was one of the best horses I had ever seen and, shortly after Queally eased him clear of his rivals, I knew he was the best I have ever seen or indeed likely to see in my lifetime.
2. There are two new kids on the block in the stayers division and I will be surprised if Colour Vision and Saddlers Rock don’t dominate the remainder of this season and beyond.
3. New Approach is certainly making an impact early on in his stud career after siring no less than three juvenile winners at Ascot in the shape of Dawn Approach, Tha’ir and the very impressive Albany winner Newfangled.
4. Black Caviar may not have captivated the masses that assembled with the manner of her victory, a win which was made all the more respectable considering she tore muscles during the race, but the build-up to her appearance was beyond anything I’ve ever known and her connections deserve great credit for taking the gamble to travel.
5. The Gosden and Buick combination had a memorable week winning their respective awards for top trainer and jockey. It would take a brave man to predict anything other than a lot of success for the future based on results and the ammunition Gosden currently houses.