The son of Triple Crown hero Justify took unbeaten record to three with decisive Dewhurst Stakes win to lead the way among juveniles on Thoroughbred Racing Commentary’s Global Rankings
The superlatives were certainly flying about after City Of Troy’s impressive victory on ground he didn’t appreciate in the Dewhurst Stakes on Saturday [Oct 14] at Newmarket.
“There is no doubt he is the best-two-year old I’ve trained,” suggested world #1 trainer Aidan O’Brien, while Ryan Moore – #1 on the jockeys’ rankings – said the son of Triple Crown winner was “as exciting a two-year-old as I have ever ridden”.
Joint-owner Michael Tabor wasn’t left behind, either. "This horse is our Frankel," he offered following an all-the-way 3½-length triumph over Alyanaabi in Britain’s two-year-old championship event.
Now unbeaten in three starts and short-priced favourite for next year’s Classics, City Of Troy certainly achieved enough to be named Europe’s champion juvenile of 2023. He is also the highest-ranked juvenile on Thoroughbred Racing Commentary’s Global Rankings, where he is now rated #24 (from #164) after a +290pt boost.
According to TRC Computer Race Ratings, which provide the basis for our weekly charts, City Of Troy’s Dewhurst victory was indeed the best performance this year by a European-based two-year-old – although not by nearly as much as might be imagined (as illustrated by the table below).
Top European 2yo of 2023
City Of Troy’s TRC Race Rating was 122 – rated just one point ahead of dual G1 winner Vandeek’s Prix Morny success on 121. Both horses are clearly top drawer, mind you – City Of Troy having hit 120 with his 6½-length romp in the G2 Superlative Stakes earlier this season, while Vandeek (119) also scored highly in the Middle Park.
Mind you, it might be worth considering how worried City Of Troy’s connections were about the soft conditions underfoot at Newmarket. ”We knew he would hate the ground –but we have never had a horse that doesn't get tired," commented O’Brien after a record-equalling eighth Dewhurst win.
The trainer added: “You needed tractor tyres to go in that today and he hasn't got tractor tyres, but what he has got is a jet engine. So his engine just pushed him through. An incredible horse, really. The best two-year-old I have ever trained, certainly.”
Speaking to ITV Racing, Moore added: “He’s got such a lovely action. These wouldn’t be his ideal conditions today.
“He was good today off the back of a long layoff on ground he wouldn’t have liked. There is a massive engine there and he is as exciting a two-year-old as I have ever ridden.”
Appleby moving back in right direction
After what some might describe as a character-building season in which he lost his position at the head of the trainers’ rankings, Charlie Appleby (#2 from #3, +133pt) has quietly enjoyed a more fruitful time recently with a slew of minor Group winners.
In the week following the G1 victory of Nations Pride in a moderate Canadian International at Woodbine on Oct 8, the Godolphin trainer has been hitting the mark left, right and centre.
Highly promising two-year-olds Dance Sequence, Ancient Wisdom and Arabian Crown all put themselves in the mix for next year’s British Classics by doing the business over Future Champions Weekend at Newmarket, where Highland Avenue also mopped up the G3 Darley Stakes to complete back-to-back trebles for jockey William Buick (stays at #5).
Appleby was also on the mark in US graded stakes company, with both Bold Act (at Keeneland) and Eternal Hope (at the ‘Belmont at the Big A’ meet). Both were ridden by Jamie Spencer.
Meanwhile, the major skirmishes are upon us in Australia, where the favourite Think About It (#7 from #24, +151pt) climbs into the world top ten after claiming the Everest, the world’s richest turf race at Randwick on Saturday [Oct 14].
Other notable movers down under are headed by seven-year-old Alligator Blood (#12 from #18, +60pt), who landed the seventh G1 win of a long career in the Might and Power Stakes at Caulfield, while Fangirl (#25 from #65, +135pt) downed Mr Brightside in the King Charles III Stakes at Randwick.
The connections of Asfoora (#45 from #101, +136pt) are eyeing Royal Ascot in 2024 after a three-length win in the G2 Schillaci at Caulfield.
In Japan, star filly Liberty Island returns to the rankings following a summer break at #13 after a consummate performance to complete the Japanese fillies’ Triple Crown in the Shuka Sho at Kyoto racecourse.
A clash with Equinox – #1 for the 30th week – is on the cards in the Japan Cup, although first the world leader returns in the Tenno Sho (Autumn) on October 29.
• Unlike traditional methods of racehorse rankings, TRC Global Rankings are a measure of an individual’s level of achievement over a rolling three-year period, providing a principled hierarchy of the leading horses, jockeys, trainers, owners and sires using statistical learning techniques. Racehorse rankings can be compared to similar exercises in other sports, like the golf’s world rankings or the ATP rankings in tennis.
They are formulated from the last three years of races we consider Group or Graded class all over the world and update automatically each week according to the quality of a horse’s performances and their recency, taking into account how races work out.
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