Even less sure now, as 6yo Biggles does it in 1m 25.70s (slow by 2.60s), carrying the same weight as the 2yo However, given it was only the 2yo's 2nd race, the ease with which he won, and his running style suggesting he will be even better on a sounder surface, that must have been a pretty good performance. 2/1 for the 2000Gns seems silly at this stage but at least he has shown something special
Shaquille !! 7/2 with a price boost this morning, what a talent. Incredible ability to keep giving away 2 lengths at the start. Won't ever be that price about him again. Wonder horse
Yep, well done, did OK too. Made a decent profit with Biggles and Great State (Win on each plus e/w double at good pre-race odds). Makes a nice change!
I do apologise again to both Oddy and Chan for getting so mixed-up early-on. I've done a few daft things on the forum internet in the past, but I have never got myself in such a muddle as early-on on Saturday. Will do my best to read fellow members' posts more carefully in future. It gets to be such an awful mess if one answers the wrong person!
Slow times at HQ almost certainly a combination of the easy ground and running into the wind. I have also noticed watching the fractional times this week that the pace has been very inconsistent in many of the ITV races as quite a number of the front runners have been there on sufferance rather than by desire. The ridiculous state of the betting for the 2000 Guineas and Derby is just typical of the way that ante post markets work in the Aidan O’Brien era. Let us be honest, though, City of Troy was mightily impressive in the way he chewed up and spat out his opponents in the Superlative. I expect he will end up in the National Stakes beating a field of his stablemates and then could scare everyone off from the Dewhurst; although he already looks like he wants further than seven.
I thought Arabic Legend's victory on Friday was promising. Not wound up as much as City of Troy, he learnt a lot and finished his race off pleasingly. Doubt they'll meet (if they do at all) before the Dewhurst, as I'm sure Balding will want to take his Dubawi colt to somewhere like York (Acomb) or Sandown (Solario).
That was 4;5 secs slower than City of Troy. On the most conservative estimate, that is 22.5l. The ground may have been slightly slower on Friday (according to the going stick) and it was Arabic Legend's first run but that seems a lot of ground to make up
By Timeform — published 17th July 2023 Tony McFadden provides the Timeform ratings reaction from Newmarket's July meeting, where City of Troy produced a stunning performance. The Superlative Stakes has some high-profile names on its roll of honour, including the likes of Dubawi, Olympic Glory and Native Trail, but no horse has put up a better performance in the race than City of Troy (119p from 102P) who shot to the head of the 2000 Guineas betting with a hugely impressive six-and-half-length success. City of Troy had looked like an exciting prospect when making a winning start at the Curragh last month for Aidan O'Brien, and he built significantly on that promise to post the best performance by a two-year-old this season. Timeform's reporter noted that he "looked a two-year-old right out of the top drawer" at Newmarket and that he is "promising great things" after running to such a high level on only his second start. For context, since 2010 only six juveniles have earned a higher Timeform performance rating than City of Troy on their second start. To further underline what a significant rating City of Troy achieved at Newmarket, it's worth noting that he is already close to the level typically required to be crowned champion juvenile - the median rating of Timeform's top two-year-old across the last ten years is 123. There was also a significant juvenile performance at Chantilly at the weekend as Ramatuelle (111p from 109) confirmed her status as France's highest-rated two-year-old, and the highest-rated filly in Europe, with a commanding four-length success in the Prix Robert Papin. The only juvenile rated higher than Ramatuelle is City of Troy - Coventry winner River Tiber is also rated 111p - and she has run to a level that, particularly with her sex allowance taken into account, suggests she will take plenty of beating in the Prix Morny. Ramatuelle has improved since being beaten by Beauvatier (104p) in a conditions race at Saint-Cloud in May, though her exploits also reflect well on him and he's unbeaten after three starts having won a listed race at Deauville recently. Sticking with the two-year-olds, Jasour (105p from 83p) showed much-improved form to run out a decisive winner of the July Stakes on the opening day of Newmarket's three-day meeting. He was taking a marked step up in class in that Group 2 event though he took it in his stride, coming through with a strong late run to score by a couple of lengths with a bit in hand. He will have the Richmond Stakes next on his agenda. Jasour is trained by Clive Cox whose two-year-olds have really hit their stride of late and Cox also on target with Sky Warrior, How's The Guvnor and Symbology in the past week. There was a shock result in the Group 2 Duchess of Cambridge Stakes on Friday as Star of Mystery was overturned by Persian Dreamer (101 from 93), though the result probably owed more to the long odds-on favourite disappointing than the winner showing significant improvement on her Albany fourth. Later on that card Arabic Legend (91p) created a good impression when winning a seven-furlong maiden that is often a race to note. He showed his inexperience on debut, running green and hanging to his right, but he asserted well inside the final half-furlong and scored with a bit in hand, looking like a nice prospect capable of going on to better things. The runner-up, Emperor's Star (87p), also shaped with plenty of encouragement despite being beaten at a short price and he too should come on for the experience.
