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This weekend was meant to be Guineas weekend so, seeing that the dreaded Covid-19 pandemic has robbed us of the race itself, I thought we could have our own race, just for a bit of fun.
I’ve chosen two winners from each of the last five decades (the best winners of the race in my opinion, although others will hold their own views) and I’d like you to nominate your 1-2-3 in the correct order.
The winner will be awarded 9 points, the runner-up 6 and the third 3. The horse with the most points at close of voting at 15:00 on Saturday will be crowned the TRF Coronavirus 2,000 Guineas winner.
Here is the shortlist, in chronological order:
Nijinsky
Brigadier Gerard
El Gran Senor
Dancing Brave
Zafonic
Mark Of Esteem
Rock Of Gibraltar
Sea The Stars
Frankel
CamelotThe race conditions are the Rowley Mile on drying good ground. And the stalls are in the centre of the course, to avoid any stands’ rail bias!
“Over any further, Sea the Stars!”
Nah- Frankel at 1m 2f and Nijinsky at a mile and a half.
1.Frankel
2.Brigadier Gerard
3.Dancing Brave4.El Gran Senor
5.Zafonic
6.Sea the Stars
7.Nijinski
8.Camelot
9.Rock of Gibraltar
10.Mark of EsteemI will be gutted if Pinatubo does not get a chance to run as he looks like a special horse too.
There will always be only one horse that could have beaten Frankel…
Nijinsky
Frankel
Sea the StarsThanks for this Gladiateur..I was so looking forward to being at Newmarket this weekend and cheering home Pinatubo. As Austin says hope he gets the chance to run very soon.
JacThings turn out best for those who make the best of how things turn out...So difficult. I cannot believe I may have to leave out Dancing Brave and Sea The Stars. Still pondering though.
Frankel
Brigadier Gerard
ZafonicI suppose it ought to be Frankel first, the rest nowhere!
The Brigadier is a clear second. He won a great Guineas.
So did El Gran Senor and Dancing Brave was brilliant. Only Frankel was better in my lifetime.
However, I have perhaps controversially picked Zafonic for third. Maybe he did not go on and prove himself an all time great but he was brilliant on Guineas day and slammed Barathea who went on to win at the Breeders Cup.
Only wish I could have found room in the places for Sea The Stars, one of my all time favourites. He beat a decent horse in Delegator but it was not a strong renewal and a mile was not his best distance. I doubt he would have won the Guineas if a Zafonic type had been in the field.
“However, I have perhaps controversially picked Zafonic for third. Maybe he did not go on and prove himself an all time great but he was brilliant on Guineas day and slammed Barathea who went on to win at the Breeders Cup.”
Zafonic was, indeed, brilliant in the Guineas- just as he had been as a 2yo- and the sight of Pat Eddery’s pink cap scything through the field on the far side in the Guineas still brings a tingle to the spine all these years later.
It’s well worth a watch on YouTube for anyone who hasn’t seen it.
Was the field that El Gran Senor thrashed the best ever? If El Gran Senor had remained at a mile/10 furlongs his reputation would have been even further enhanced. But, unlike Frankel, his team chose to go for the big one
“Was the field that El Gran Senor thrashed the best ever?”
It’s a coin flip between that field and the 1971 renewal, in my opinion.
Mill Reef was obviously better over further, as was Rainbow Quest in El Gran Senor’s year, so it may be wise to look at the other milers in the two fields. I’d have to say that Chief Singer (eight length winner of the St James’s Palace Stakes; winner of the Sussex Stakes) and Lear Fan (Prix Jacques le Marois by four lengths from subsequent Champion Stakes winner Palace Music) were better milers than anything The Brig beat; so 1984 it is.
As for El Gran Senor himself, he should have won the Derby, as we all know.
1. Frankel
2. Brigadier Gerard
3. NijinskyIt has to be Frankel by the way he blew away the field closely followed by BG and you cannot have a top 3 without including the great Nijinsky again though closely followed by Dancing Brave.
This is one where you could change your mind about the placed horses each day. I think Frankel would always be my winner but now I’m thinking how could I leave out Brigadier Gerard and Dancing Brave
I’ll leave my initial view as it is as I’ll probably change my mind again tomorrow and Saturday.Frankel loses if Queally runs the same race as he did that day
acts as a pacemaker to these lotBlackbeard to conquer the World
That’s definitely an interesting perspective, Nathan. There’s no way he holds off this far higher quality opposition up the hill if he goes off like the proverbial scalded cat here.
The counter-argument, of course, is which of these would be close enough to pounce in the final furlong? We saw Casamento pay the price for trying to give chase too early; granted, this field are all a lot better than him but Excelebration failed repeatedly to last home when he tried to take on Frankel too early.
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