WONDER HORSE
But can Pinatubo bring some joy to a nation starved of sport?
THOSE gathered for the Qipco 2,000 Guineas on the Rowley Mile on April 30 in 2011 experienced an unfolding drama that is seared into their memories. It wasn’t just the scintillating, front-running performance of Frankel as he pulverised opponents under jockey Tom Queally that made the day so memorable, but the spontaneous round of applause that swept through the Newmarket crowd with fully two furlongs of the mile contest still to go as those present realised they were witnessing something special.
When the 2,000 Guineas is held at Newmarket on Saturday, the stage will be very different. The stands will be deserted, with only essential personnel allowed through the gates.
The voice of the racecourse commentator may echo across the expanse of pristine turf but this will largely be racing aux
naturel — a throwback to the 1600s when King Charles II was among the in-crowd following the racing, with the only sounds being the thunder of the thoroughbreds’ hooves on turf and the shouts of their jockeys.
It may be a world away from the stage Frankel graced but it could still witness something special from Pinatubo. After 11 weeks of shutdown, racing is in need of a good news story and the pugnacious colt who won all his six races as a two-year-old might be the one capable of delivering it.
He could also start a story that could be the narrative of the racing summer in this extraordinary year. Pinatubo, a son of Shamardal who carries the colours of Sheik Mohammed’s Godolphin stable, already has a lofty reputation — but one that does not extend out of the racing village... yet.
His first-season performances included a nine-length romp in the Group One National Stakes at the Curragh, wins at Epsom’s Derby meeting, Glorious Goodwood, Royal Ascot, plus Newmarket’s Dewhurst. That form influenced a team of international handicappers to rate Pinatubo the best European two-year-old for 25 years.
His two-year-old efforts, the handicappers said, were superior to the level of form achieved by Frankel, whose continued improvement under the tutelage of legendary trainer Sir Henry Cecil ultimately saw him become the highest rated racehorse of all time in an unbeaten 14-race career.
The racing world is full of stars that have crashed and burned but many will hope Pinatubo can continue being the real deal and his trainer Charlie Appleby believes he has the model racehorse.
Appleby said: ‘Pinatubo’s main asset is that he is the ultimate professional. Any sportsman at the top, you generally do not see them fretting going into a champion competition whatever it is, boxing or golf.
‘Those cool, calm customers are the ones that often turn up with their A game and channel their positivity into the swing of the club or the punch of the glove.
‘Pinatubo has a great mind, he turns up and knows that once those starting gates open, it is game on. He is not a horse who lights you up in the mornings.
‘He is a well-balanced colt. He showed his true attributes last season taking in some of the most challenging tracks in Britain at Epsom, Goodwood and Newmarket and he has strengthened over the winter. He has met every challenge we have set him so far.’
To match Frankel’s achievements both on and off the track, Pinatubo has a massive act to follow.
But Ed Chamberlin, who will anchor ITV’s coverage of the 2,000 Guineas, says the stage the next weekend offers a bigger-than-normal springboard to a colt who could potentially go on to the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot or, in an even bolder statement, have a tilt at the Investec Derby at Epsom on July 4.
Chamberlin said: ‘On the ITV journey we have had two horses in Enable, of course with Frankie Dettori, and dual Grand National winner Tiger Roll, which have resonated beyond racing.
‘Despite his brilliance as a two-year-old, Pinatubo is miles off that at the moment. But he has the opportunity to change that largely because I would like to think the 2,000 Guineas this year will have a larger audience than any 2,000 Guineas in recent memory with people desperate for sporting action the first weekend back.
‘There will be plenty new eyes watching the 2,000 Guineas and our job will be to get Pinatubo into their conscience and sell the thrill of racing with a potential superstar.’
Despite Pinatubo being odds-on favourite for the 2,000 Guineas, bookmakers also see the value of him winning.
Simon Clare of Coral said: ‘After the false start to the season, we need something special, something explosive and thrilling and Pinatubo is the horse who could deliver it.’