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Michael Tabor had just introduced the F-word into the conversation, so it was important to make sure he meant it.
City Of Troy’s performance in the Dewhurst Stakes had lit a fire around Newmarket, the course ablaze with the kind of excitement you wouldn’t normally associate with an 8/15 favorite winning. It all came from the moment this two-year-old shifted gears and zoomed toward the horizon.
City Of Troy trainer Aidan O’Brien was out of breath and so excited he struggled to get the words out. Ryan Moore, his rider, guards his feelings carefully, but here he felt moved enough to use the description ‘rare’ for the colt’s talent.
But then Tabor, one of his co-owners, came along and made the kind of statement that would stop you in your tracks. He mentioned the city of Troy in the same breath as Frankel and suddenly you realized the enormity of it all.
“I really think he’s our Frankel,” Tabor said.
City Of Troy and Ryan Moore come home to win the Native Trail’s Dewhurst Stakes
Trainer Aidan O’Brien and jockey Ryan Moore with Frankie Dettori (centre) in the winners’ enclosure after winning the Native Trail’s Dewhurst Stakes with City Of Troy on day two
Honestly? This was like comparing an under-21 football player to Lionel Messi or a promising golfer coming out of college to Tiger Woods. City Of Troy has only competed three times, Frankel – 14 wins from 14 races over three spellbinding seasons – is the best many of us have ever seen.
But Tabor, who will celebrate his 82nd birthday in two weeks, was completely clear in what he said. He spoke at length and knew exactly the connotations, as well as the pressure that comes with such statements.
“I’m not just throwing this (comparison) away,” Tabor emphasized. ‘Not at all. I know the way Aidan talks. We are all optimists and so should you be in life, especially in this game. But believe me, this horse is special. No question. He’s special. He’s the real deal.
‘Let’s hope he’s as popular as Frankel. He will only gain that popularity as time goes on. And hopefully, as time goes on, he will win all those big races and get the accolades that are given to him. It’s easy to talk. But I like to talk before they achieve anything and that’s what we believe.
‘Maybe we’ll get egg on our face later. But I really believe: this horse can be anything. Aidan was nervous beforehand because of the condition of the ground. They say a good horse can ride on any surface. And this is a good horse.’
He’s better than that. City Of Troy had last run 91 days ago. He had left racegoers at the Newmarket July Course gasping that afternoon when he finished seven lengths clear of his rivals in the Group Two Superlative Stakes and received ridiculously short odds for next spring’s 2000 Guineas – he’s no bigger now then just before that race.
A deluge on Friday evening had left O’Brien so concerned about the condition of the surface that he walked around the track 35 minutes before the Dewhurst – the race that crowns the season’s most important juvenile – to make sure it was clear to him. would not endanger.
There was enough danger lurking within the opposition here to take advantage if something went wrong, not least the Owen Burrows-trained Alyanaabi and Iberian, a fine winner of Doncaster’s Champagne Stakes four weeks ago.
City of Troy’s spectacular victory in the Dewhurst Stakes has drawn comparisons to the legendary Frankel
Tabor mentioned the city of Troy in the same breath as Frankel, which shocked those around him
But Moore chased City of Troy out of the stalls and challenged his rivals to catch him if they could. That didn’t work out – and one of the best moments of the flat season came when Moore asked his partner to go the extra mile. The reaction was both visible and dramatic.
Frankel won the same race in October 2010, by just three lengths, before doing things as he came of age under the glorious guidance of the late Sir Henry Cecil, which led to films being made and books being written. This is why Tabor’s assessment carries so much weight.
“You needed tractor tires to go into that area,” O’Brien said. ‘It doesn’t have tractor tires. What he has is a jet engine. His engine just pushed him through. He is an incredible horse. We’ve never seen him get tired and we’ve never had a horse like that.
This was O’Brien’s record-equalling eighth success in the race and he added: ‘He’s the best two-year-old we’ve had. There is no doubt. Absolute. He is from Justify (the American Triple Crown winner); they just keep going. It will be the Guineas and then hopefully the Derby.’
And after that – if he does what they think he will do – it will be history. Racing needs superstars. There certainly is one now.