Who Have Been the Three Stars of The British Flat Season?
The British flat season is set to come to a close next month and, once again, we have seen fantastic performances on the track.
There will be some strong contenders in each respective category when it comes to the end of the season awards. Here are three we feel deserve a special mention for the year they have had.
Ghaiyyath
At the start of 2020, Ghaiyyath had something to prove in the UK as his only previous Group One successes had come in France and Germany.
Not only has the five-year-old ended any doubts that he is one of the best middle-distance runners in Europe, but he has also dominated the division this season, with victories coming in the Coronation Cup, Eclipse Stakes and Juddmonte International.
Ghaiyyath has a very unique style of racing. His wins have come from the front end of the field with some relentless opening sectionals. Apart from the Irish Champion Stakes, which was won by Magical, his rivals have been unable to reel him back in.
Charlie Appleby’s runner is set to return to the Arc next month where he is 12/1 in the horse racing betting to cap off a fantastic campaign. Connections will be hoping he performs much better than his 10th place finish 12 months earlier.
Jim Crowley
Former Champion Jockey Jim Crowley deserves a special mention for the season he has had. The Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum-retained rider has had a lot of success at the big meetings this year, most notably at Royal Ascot, Glorious Goodwood and York’s Ebor Meeting.
It has also been a landmark year for Crowley as he rode his 2000th winner as a jockey. 14 years ago, he switched from National Hunt racing to the flat and this has proved to be a successful move.
Battaash has been a horse Crowley has been most associated with over the last few years and the pair once again had big race wins in 2020. They came out on top in the King’s Stand Stakes and the Nunthorpe, two big contests in the British Sprint Series.
Although he is unlikely to be crowned Champion Jockey, Crowley has already described this season as the best of his career so far.
Love
The star three-year-old performer in 2020 has to be Love, who is unbeaten in three starts on the track. Aidan O’Brien’s filly was too hot for her rivals in the 1000 Guineas and Oaks to join the elusive club of dual-Classic winners.
It is going to be exciting to see how far Love can go in her career. The early signs suggest she could be a very special filly.
The daughter of Galileo stepped out of her age category recently in the Yorkshire Oaks, where she scored by five lengths. She looks to be getting quicker and strong with every run.
Love is the favourite in the Arc betting and if successful in France, she would dethrone Enable as the new Queen of racing.
There is still so much left to look forward to in October on the flat calendar as not only do we have an exciting Arc lined up, it is also the 10th anniversary of British Champions Day at Ascot.
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Suzanne Ashton, Founder of Everything Horse (Est, 2012), has a BA Hons in Marketing Management and a Diploma in Equine Science. Suzanne has ridden and owned horses all her life and has twelve years of experience in marketing, writing, design, SEO, and website creation.