Is Arkle’s god-like supremacy forty years on fact or fiction? Phil Smith, in his role as the British Horseracing Authority’s head of handicapping, deals in the facts behind horse performances for a living and is planning to review the form of Arkle – and those other giants of the 1960s Flyingbolt and Mill House – to bring it within the context of the modern-day stars like Kauto Star and Denman. “It came from the Anglo/Irish classifications’ press conference in May,” he explained. “We were looking at the ratings for Master Minded, Kauto Star and Denman and the question was posed ‘where would they rate in relationship to Arkle?’. I, in a silly moment said ‘in my view pretty close’ because I couldn’t believe Arkle was rated 212 by Timeform.”
Tags: