Golan's effort was best of the season.
Byline: Paul CurtisGOLAN produced the performance of the season to date to land a thrilling King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes at Ascot on Saturday, last year's 2,000 Guineas winner justifying the decision to keep him in training by producing an improved Postmark of 131 at the first time of asking.
The King George was definitely not the race it could have been, as the fast conditions had forced the withdrawal of the best horse in training, Sakhee, and it was a shame that there was no three-year-old representation. However, it would be wrong to consider this a poor renewal, and though Golan's figure of 131 is below the recent best for the race - Daylami's 134 in 1999 - it compares favourably with the mid-120s figures achieved by King's Theatre and Lammtarra in the mid-1990s.
The true worth of this form will become clear over the next few months, but those who remember the impression Golan made in winning his Guineas will not be surprised, while narrow runner-up Nayef (131) has long promised to post a top-class figure such as this. In third place, Mark Johnston's Hardwicke Stakes winner Zindabad, a super-tough six-year-old, confirmed that form.
The disappointment of the race was favourite Grandera, but though he did not deserve to be as short in the betting, this was clearly not his form. He is a fast-ground specialist and overnight watering did not help his cause, but it is likely that a mile and a half in top company will always find him out and it will be interesting to see which way Godolphin go with him from here.
nDon't miss Ratings Review in the Racing Post Weekender, out on Wednesday
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| Title Annotation: | Sports |
|---|---|
| Publication: | The Racing Post (London, England) |
| Date: | Jul 29, 2002 |
| Words: | 284 |
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