Frankel is ‘new kid on block’ at stud farm

Just two weeks after leaving Sir Henry Cecil’s Newmarket  stable, the horse regarded by many as the greatest of all time is settling into his surroundings at his owner Prince Khalid Abdullah’s premises in Cheveley, just four miles outside the renowned training centre.

His next-door neighbour in a brand-new box is Oasis Dream, already an established stallion, while the likes of Champs Elysees, Dansili and Bated Breath are further down the row of  red-brick lodgings.

No other male member of the Juddmonte band has, though,  arrived with such a gilded reputation or would have been able to command a fee of £125,000 with their prowess unproven. But breeders are already queuing up with blue-blooded mares, and such names as Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Danedream, Stacelita, Zagora and Vodka are already scheduled  to meet him between mid- February and June next year.

“He’s the most intelligent horse, very curious to see  what’s going on,” said Banstead’s general manager, Philip Mitchell. “He’s settled in well and is just one of the boys. He’s no longer up there [at the top], he’s the new kid on the block.”

Mitchell knows there is no guarantee Frankel will be a hit at stud, as the likes of George Washington and Starspangledbanner failed because of fertility issues and many others have not passed on their ability.

“You’ve got to be realistic,” he said. “The statistics tell us only one in nine or ten horses to go to stud are successful.

“But not every horse is going to cover the class of mare Frankel will. Dan-sili started at £8,000 and now he’s up to £80,000. He didn’t start off with the best of mares.”

Mitchell went on: “This horse is the ultimate and he just has the most wonderfully intelligent outlook on life. There has been an incredible amount of interest from as far afield as America and Japan, while we have also been approached by Australian breeders.”

Frankel’s diet has changed from the much-quoted statistic of 23lb of Canadian oats, the equivalent of 600 Weetabix a day. Mockridge said: “He will have a lower amount of protein now and will have a combination of oats and stallion mix, which includes molasses, maize, peas and all sorts of things. He doesn’t mind – you put it in front of him and he eats it.” Aside from the television cameras, one person to cast a nostalgic eye over Frankel was Sandeep Gauravaram, his devoted groom for Cecil. Asked how life post-Frankel was, an admittedly cheery Gauravaram said: “Boring. I won’t get another like him.”

Meanwhile, Long Run will face five rivals as he aims to make a winning return to action in the Betfair Chase at Haydock tomorrow. The main rival to Nicky Henderson’s French recruit could be the up-and-coming Silviniaco Conti, the Paul Nicholls-trained six-year-old having shown smart form as a novice and appearing much improved when sauntering clear in the Charlie Hall Chase on his return. The Giant Bolster, Weird Al Wayward Prince and Cannington Brook are also in the field.