Coming to grips with life after Frankel and Black Caviar

Now that Frankel and Black Caviar, arguably two of the greatest racehorses of recent times, have both been retired, I’m sure most of us will be anxiously looking for the next superstar to come along.

Quite clearly these iconic equine athletes, who scaled the summit of their sport with their extraordinary achievements on both sides of the continent, have left behind a huge void. We are told that horses like these come once in a lifetime, which if taken literally, means that its not worth going racing because what you’ll see are just run-of-the-mill horses.

That’s not true, or at least, I would like to believe that it’s not.

In less than two weeks, we’ll probably get some sort of at a glimpse at the next star in the making when Newmarket hosts the first Classics of the British flat racing season — the 2,000 and 1,000 Guineas.

There is something so exciting about the early part of the season, with all the speculation and anticipation that takes place during the various Classic Trials and the build up to the Guineas and the Derby after that, that makes life after Frankel and Black Caviar, all that more bearable.

And what a mouth-watering crop of youngsters lie in wait.

We haven’t had a chance to assess how well Dawn Approach has matured over the winter although he still dominates the market. But we have had the opportunity to see one strong challenger emerge in the form of Toronado who was hugely impressive when romping home in the Craven last week. He looks a very nice colt who is certain to improve for that run, and what a performance it was. Richard Hannon’s protege ticked all the right boxes as he settled well, quickened when asked to, and responded with a nice set of gears to win comfortably in the end. It was a well-executed effort and looked certain to boost confidence levels among his connections. Toronado now challenges the unbeaten Dawn Approach, who we will only get to see on Guineas day on May 4, for favouritism, and rightly so.

In my opinion, another horse to put in an eye-catching performance was Sir Henry Cecil’s Nell Gwyn heroine Hot Snap.

The lightly-raced daughter of Pivotal may have looked a trifle green for most part of the contest, but she also showed that she had bundles of energy and ability, when her rider found the gap on the rails and asked her to do her thing. What a stellar performance it was and it really shook-up the market for the fillies’ Classic pushing long-time leader Certify, who is without a run this season, down the table.

That certainly won’t be causing Certify’s trainer Mahmoud Al Zarouni to loose some sleep, as he likes to do things quietly and away from the glare of the media or odd-makers, but it will have given him something to think about.

French-trained What A Name is another to consider given the talent that she exuded when winning a Group 3 contest at Maisons-Laffitte earlier in the month, while we don’t know in what sort of form the unbeaten Just The Judge is heading to Newmarket’s big meeting. But what we do know is that the horse looks a serious Guineas prospect in both England and Ireland and also a solid one for the Epsom Oaks.

So, with or without Frankel and Black Caviar, there is still a lot to look forward to in the next couple of weeks.