Frankel’s next shot: the Coral Eclipse
Good gets better with time, but if there is someone who is trying to turn best into better then that is Sir Henry Cecil who is still onto making the horse ‘better’ by trying him for farther distances.
He plans to race Frankel for over a mile and a quarter, a distance that the undefeated three-year-old has not experienced or tested before. This pertains to the planning that Henry Cecil has in mind as far as the next season’s Coral-Eclipse at Sandown is
concerned.
"Hopefully he will go on and I hope, by the time of the Eclipse Stakes, he will be ready to tackle a mile and a quarter. Personally I think it is a distance he will get well now that he has learnt to settle better and he could be an even better horse at
that trip”, said Henry Cecil, Frankel’s trainer.
"Sir Henry Cecil has said the Coral-Eclipse could be Frankel's first attempt at ten furlongs, and with this year's impressive winner, So You Think, also staying in training, we could have a race to savour next July," said Coral's David Stevens.
The Eclipse Stakes are held each year in early July at Sandown Park over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 7 yards. It is open for participation by thoroughbreds aged three years or older.
This year it was won by A P O’Brien’s So You Think with Seamus Heffernan onboard. Keeping the victory in view, Frankel was sent at 2-7 and So You Think went ahead with 5-2.
The reason that the 2012 Coral Eclipse will turn out to be something for sure is that it will bring till yet unbeaten Frankel and this year’s Eclipse Champion So You Think face to face in order to compete for the title.
Even though it is evident that the three-year-old colt will be competing against a horse who is not only accustomed to distances that are longer than what Frankel is used to, but has also won the particular title.
The two going neck and neck has not shaken the confidence of the connections the least bit rather they are positive about the distance improvement in their horse and are sure that the race will be for the better.
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