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The amazing Frankel, recognized as one of the greatest racehorses ever, was named Cartier Horse of the Year on Tuesday for an unprecedented second consecutive time at the 2012 Cartier Racing Awards. Owned and bred by Prince Khalid Abdulla and trained by Sir Henry Cecil, four-year-old Frankel also received the top prize in the Cartier Older Horse category. "All of us at Warren Place are thrilled that Frankel's achievements this year have been recognized with him winning this most prestigious award for the second time running," Cecil said. "Frankel with his brilliance has been a great ambassador for British Racing and has captured the hearts of so many people, some of whom have never been racing in their lives. |
"Thank you Frankel and to everyone that has voted for him."
There has only been one other dual Cartier Horse of the Year, the great racemare Ouija Board, who gained the sought-after accolade in both 2004 and 2006. She won a total of four Cartier Awards.
Frankel, a champion in each of the three years he raced, has gone one better with five Cartier Awards.
In addition, there is the Cartier/Daily Telegraph Award of Merit which this year has gone to Team Frankel. The award is for the person or persons who, in the opinion of the special 16-strong Cartier Jury, has/have done most for European racing and/or breeding either over their lifetime or within the past 12 months. Team Frankel includes all the people who contributed to the horse's development at Juddmonte Farms in Britain and Ireland plus those assembled by Sir Henry Cecil to train him.
The annual Cartier Racing Awards were announced for the 22nd year before an invited audience of 300 at the Dorchester Hotel in London.
The Cartier Awards were established in 1991 to reward excellence in horseracing. They are determined by points earned by horses in Pattern races throughout 2012, combined at the end of season with the opinions of a panel of racing journalists and votes from readers of the Racing Post and The Daily Telegraph.
Frankel has finished his racing career after 14 unbeaten starts and recently moved from Sir Henry Cecil's Warren Place stables, the horse's home since January 2010, back to nearby Banstead Manor Stud, where he was born, in preparation for taking up stud duties early next year.
He was better than ever during 2012, including the devastating 11-length win in the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot in June and his imperious success when tried over 10 furlongs for the first time in the Group 1 Juddmonte International at York in August.
His final start came in Britain's most valuable race, the Group 1, £1.3 million Champion Stakes at Ascot on October 20, when he was the comfortable scorer from the world's second-best horse, Cirrus Des Aigles, despite very soft going and a slow start. Frankel earned more than £3 million.
In the Cartier Horse of the Year category, Frankel triumphed over three-time classic winner Camelot, Cirrus Des Aigles, Excelebration and Nathaniel. His rivals in the Cartier Older Horse category were again Cirrus Des Aigles, Excelebration and Nathaniel plus Moonlight Cloud.
Tremendous Australian racemare Black Caviar, unbeaten in 22 outings, takes the Cartier Sprinter Award, albeit narrowly from the Richard Fahey-trained Mayson, a talented and tough speedster who won the Group 1 July Cup at Newmarket decisively, with Wizz Kid, Moonlight Cloud and another Australian mare Ortensia also in contention. Black Caviar, trained by Peter Moody, came over to Britain this year for the six-furlong Group 1 Golden Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot and looked like winning quite comfortably before her jockey Luke Nolen eased down in the closing stages and nearly gave the race away, holding on by a head.
Camelot always held sway for the Cartier Three-Year-Old Colt Award, with the Coolmore owned and Aidan O'Brien-trained colt winning three straight Group 1 classics -- the Two Thousand Guineas, the Epsom Derby and the Irish Derby -- before coming second in the St Leger when attempting the British Triple Crown. He was followed by Saonais, Encke, Bayrir and Most Improved.
The Fugue has never finished out of the first four and a lack of luck contributed to the talented filly only winning one Group 1 this year, the Nassau Stakes at Goodwood. She could easily have triumphed on her latest start in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf on November 2 but found her run blocked and also did not have the rub of the green in other races. Nevertheless, she did enough to gain the Cartier Three-Year-Old Filly Award for owner/breeders Lord & Lady Lloyd-Webber ahead of another John Gosden-trained filly Elusive Kate, Was, Shirocco Star and Beauty Parlour.
Dawn Approach went through his first season unbeaten in six outings and the Jim Bolger-trained colt is the winner in the Cartier Two-Year-Old Colt Award, seeing off fellow Group/Grade 1 winners Reckless Abandon, Olympic Glory, George Vancouver and Kingsbarns.
Another Godolphin-owned two-year-old Certify, trained by Mahmood Al Zarooni, also enjoyed an unblemished juvenile career and the four-time winner is the Cartier Two-Year-Old Filly, getting the nod over Sky Lantern, Rosdhu Queen, Flotilla and Silasol.
Colour Vision, also owned by Godolphin but trained by Saeed bin Suroor, takes the honors in the Cartier Stayer category after his Gold Cup victory at Royal Ascot. The others in contention were Times Up, Saddlers Rock, Opinion Poll and Rite Of Passage.
Harry Herbert, Cartier's racing consultant, commented: "Frankel lit up all our lives with his magnificent performances in 2012 and during the previous two years. He is the most successful horse in the 22-year history of the Cartier Racing Awards and that is no surprise given his domination of so many races.
"Sir Henry Cecil thinks there has never been a better racehorse and tonight we celebrate Frankel's achievements and those of the team behind him."