Betting tips / Timeform / 30 June 2012 / Leave a comment Bet Now

Ryan Moore rode five winners at Ascot, and in his wrap discusses the stars of the meeting, reflects on his winners and explains why he'll always speak his mind...

Far be it from me to tell a training genius like Sir Henry Cecil what to do with his horses, but if Frankel were mine I would be tempted to run him in the Eclipse and the Arc.

Seriously.

His Queen Anne win was obviously the best performance I have ever seen on a racetrack - and probably everyone's, whatever their age - and I genuinely feel this horse could win in any company over any trip. He looks that special, and I have no doubt that a master like Henry could train the horse to win both if he so wished.

Mind you, I bloody hope he doesn't go down the Eclipse-Arc route, as I would like to have a chance of winning those races!

Compare his performance to that of Black Caviar in winning the Diamond Jubilee.

I gather some journalists thought I was being overly-negative - not that I am in the least bit bothered by that, as I will say what I think - when I said here a couple of weeks ago that the ridiculous media coverage was in danger of backfiring badly if she didn't win.

Thankfully, she did. Just.

But I think that it underlines how much the media circus got out of control that when a superstar comes from the other side of the world after a hard season and wins a Group 1 at Royal Ascot, and the over-riding emotion is one of relief, and disappointment and deflation, in some quarters.

All things considered, I actually think she did really well to win.

I didn't have a ride in the race but I went out to see her in the paddock, and I couldn't believe how poor she looked. She was hairy and didn't look to have a lot of core strength about her. She looked like a mare who had had a hard life and needed a rest.

That is no criticism whatsoever of her connections and her preparation, simply the fact that she had been on the go for so long and had travelled around the world.

Sitting in the weighing room before the race, I was genuinely concerned that she may get beaten and, though she moved well early on, you could tell that her jockey was never confident and happy in the race.

But thank god she won and kept her unbeaten record.

Personally, I had a great Royal Ascot and was lucky to be top jockey at the meeting with five winners. Well, I may have picked up the trophy on count-back, but in my mind William and I shared the riding honours.

The highlight of my week was arguably Simenon. Ruby said to me he was a little aeroplane and he certainly took off in his two wins. I have ridden worse horses than him to win Cup races - not many stayers can quicken up like him - and he has to be a big player in those races.

And it just goes to show what a genius Willie Mullins is. That horse was away from home, but I knew down at the start that he would win the Queen Alexandra, as he was bouncing. That is some training feat to get a horse that fresh and well just four days after winning at the meeting.

He will probably be up against Colour Vision in races in the near future and Frankie's win on him in the Gold Cup was one of the most popular of the week, and a great result for racing.

But if I was on the second I would have felt pissed off not to get the race in the stewards room.

Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't have expected to. Because as the rules stand, he had no chance of getting it, with the winning distance being half-a-length length. But Opinion Poll lost momentum when bumped, and you cannot underestimate how important that is when it is so close to the finish. I have mentioned it before but I think the rules maybe need to be looked at.

Of my other winners, Estimate won as I suspected she might when stepped up in trip in the Queen's Vase, and it was obviously great for the Queen and the boss. Maybe, Estimate will go to Goodwood next for the 1m6f race there.

And I never felt in danger of defeat on Fast Or Free in the Britannia; he has a long way to go to reach Group class but he is straightforward and uncomplicated and clearly improving.

My other winner was Sea Moon in the Hardwicke, and I don't mind saying that the manner of his win surprised me. I thought it was a hot race but he did it really well, and I don't buy into the fact that Dunaden was unlucky not to win. Yes, he didn't get the run of the race and would have finished a lot closer with a clear run. But I won by over three lengths and I thought there was a moment in the straight about 2f out when there was a gap for Dunaden, and he didn't have the acceleration to take it.

We are now eyeing the Betfair King George for Sea Moon but for me he still has a bit to find with St Nicholas Abbey.

Yes, there were a few disappointments but I wouldn't include Carlton House's second as one. He ran a great race and I must say that I thought So You Think looked magnificent before the race and showed what a top class horse he is.

The meeting also confirmed what I have been saying all season, that John Gosden has remarkable strength in depth.

Gatewood and the very impressive Camborne looked Group horses in winning their handicaps, and Fallen For You delivered on the track what she had shown me on the gallops before I rode her to win at Kempton earlier in the season. Namely, that she is high class and probably the best 3yo filly miler at the moment.

A few thoughts from the other races. Dawn Approach impressed in the Coventry. I am not sure about him as a potential Guineas winner but it will take a good 2yo to beat him at the moment. Reckless Abandon looked a very fast horse in the Norfolk, for all his wayward tendencies, and while Newfangled clearly looked a class filly in the Albany, I think she needs to switch off a bit better to fulfill her massive potential.

I have probably missed out plenty from the week, but it couldn't have gone much better for me.

Well actually, I could have done without winning the jockeys' title as I had to hang around to collect the trophy.

The traffic afterwards was horrendous...