Frankel, what next?

Lady of Shamrock won as expected, but it was not a great start to the EPL or La Liga seasons as Real Madrid failed to win and Man Utd lost. Barcelona and Man City won as expected but City had to dig deep down to overcome newcomers Southampton.

Back to racing where Frankel gave yet another peer-less demonstration in the Juddmonte International, dismantling the likes of St Nicholas Abbey and Farhh. Now that he's proved his authority at a mile and a quarter against quality opposition, what is next for him? The Champion Stakes at the same distance on Champions Day seems to be the preferred destination for connections. This will not enhance his rating or reputation. There are 3 things that remain for him to show before he's unequivocally called the best thoroughbred to have ever run, to put any debate to rest, to surpass the Sea The Stars, Ribot, and Secretariat in all minds. To prove to any racing goer beyond any doubt.

For purits like me, he needs to win at a mile and a half. This is the ultimate distance for European racing and breeding. This is the Classic distance that separated the greats like Dancing Brave, Montjeu, Sinndar, to very good ones that tried but didn't stay like Dubai Millenium.

He needs to win outside of England. Black Caviar has come to Royal Ascot to show her greatness and Frankel needs to step outside of these shores to show he can travel and adapt to a new environment whether it's in France or the States. Or Dubai.

Finally, the ultimate would be to win on dirt. Giant's Causeway and Sakhee, turf champions in their own right, almost did it on dirt in their Breeders Cup ventures. To show to the racing world, particularly the American public, that he's the uncontested champion on either surface.

In other words, to achieve the greatest of all feats, he needs to win the Arc and the Breeders Cup Classic. The Coolmore connections have to be lauded to have tried So You Think in both, plus in the Dubai World Cup. They had the horse to do it, but not the trainer. Frankel, I believe he can achieve both, but I don't think the connections will run in any of these 2 races. His place among the greats is already secured, the risk of him losing his undefeated tag is too big to take. As is, he's the best there has ever run in most minds. Whether it's an uncontested or undisputed fact, is not something that will concern the connections. It looks like Champions Day Champion Stakes is the remaining race for all of us to look forward to savoring this amazing thoroughbred that is Frankel.

Kickstart to the season

This is it, start of what promises to be another cracker of an EPL season. Spanish La Liga starts too on Saturday with the expectation that Barcelona and Real Madrid will run away from the pack, a la Frankel. Here are some of my predictions for the first week-end.

Arsenal v/s Sunderland. This is a first serious test for Arsene Wenger and his team. Not just because it's their first match post-RVP, it's also against Martin O'Neil, who's a master giant killer. If the Gunners haven't fully recuperated from the departure of their talisman, they will be made to pay by the visitors. It's a real tricky match for the hosts and there's no certainty that they will come up with the 3 points.

Man City v/s Southampton. The Citizens start their championship defence with a rather easy game against newly-promoted Southampton. Easy 3 points for the hosts here, with in-form Tevez certain to be at the fore-front of things.

Everton v/s Man Utd. The Red Devils always have a hard game at Goodison Park and it will certainly be the case again for their opening game. They might be lucky if they catch an Everton that is not in full-flow at this stage. But the reverse might be true as well. The RVP transfer will certainly have given the squad a big boost. They should either draw or win this game, so a draw-no-bet on the Red Devils looks safe.

Real Madrid v/s Valencia. Real had a really good pre-season winning all their games State-side, but this is not going to be an easy 3 points for the hosts. Their core players have only recently started serious training, so Mourinho will count on a few fringe players to make their mark. Still, their quality should be enough to overcome a Valencia team that is in a rebuilding stage this year. They have at least 6 new acquisitions and will take time to gel as well. Madrid should be able to get the vital 3 points here.

Barcelona v/s Real Sociedad. This is the league debut for new Barcelona manager Tito Vilanova. It is widely expected that the previous assistant coach will continue the highly-successful and formidable system of play of the Blaugrana. That being the case, Barcelona should be headed for the easy win. A note of prudence though that Guardiola lost his first league game in charge of Barcelona. Lightning rarely happens twice though!

The value of the week-end is in racing State-side where Lady of Shamrock looks hard to beat in Saturday's Del Mar Oaks. The winner of the American Oaks is a leading player among the Classic female contingent on turf, having been only beaten once on the surface after a rough trip. She should be in the first 3 and is a Place recommendation.


Win: Man City, Real Madrid, Barcelona

Draw-no-bet: Man Utd
Place: Lady of Shamrock