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18 Sep 2013

Novellist leading the way in Series rankings

Novellist and Johnny Murtagh en route to achieving the highest BCS rating in the King George last month. Image copyright of Racingfotos.com

With less than half of the QIPCO British Champions Series still to go, Novellist remains the highest-ranked racehorse in the Middle Distance category on BCS ratings (based on official BHA figures recorded in a QIPCO British Champions Series race) with a mark of 129.

""The Andreas Wohler-trained German raider, who won this year’s renewal of the King George and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, is currently 3 lbs superior than Al Kazeem.

Roger Charlton’s five-year-old has been successful in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes and the Coral-Eclipse this campaign and is set to tackle the Juddmonte International Stakes at York later this month, when he could face Epsom Derby hero Ruler of the World (120), 2011 Champion Stakes winner Cirrus des Aigles and Jim Bolger’s Irish Derby champion Trading Leather (120).

Mukhadram, who is on a mark of 125, and the 122-rated Declaration of War are the third and fourth-best middle distance runners in the Series respectively.

""In the Mile division, Toronado not only proved superiority on the turf, but also in the BCS ratings as he is now on a mark of 126.

Dawn Approach, who was beaten by three quarters of a length in the pair’s classic Duel on the Downs clash, is now on a revised rating of 125.

Toronado and Dawn Approach are expected to fight it out once more in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on British Champions Day. Tickets are going quickly so don’t miss out!

    The pair are clear of the third highest-rated miler Farhh, who is on a BCS Series rating of 121 following his impressive Lockinge victory in May.

""Following Lethal Force’s dominant performances in the Sprinters division this year, the Clive Cox-trained four-year-old has been allocated a rating of 121.

Lethal Force has won the Diamond Jubilee Stakes and the Darley July Cup this campaign and on both of those occasions he has beaten Society Rock.

James Fanshawe’s six-year-old is on a mark of 117 and will be next seen in the Haydock Sprint Cup later in the campaign, where connections will hope it will prove to be third time lucky against Clive Cox’s sprinting star.

   Sole Power, the winner of the King’s Stand Stakes, is third on a BCS rating  of 115. 

""The Fillies & Mares category is controlled by the Etihad Airways Falmouth Stakes winner and runner-up, Elusive Kate and Sky Lantern.

However, despite Elusive Kate winning at the July Festival, the QIPCO 1,000 Guineas winner is still the superior of the two in terms of British Champions Series rankings. 

Sky Lantern has a rating of 119, while John Gosden’s mare is on a mark of 117 – 3 lb higher than the Epsom Oaks heroine Talent. 

""In the Long Distance section, it is effectively evenly poised with a top-class performance in the Long Distance Cup on British Champions Day likely to settle who is the winner of the division.

The current leader of this category is the Willie Mullins-trained Simenon, who recorded his BCS rating of 115 when chasing home the Queen’s filly, Estimate, in the Ascot Gold Cup. Estimate, who received a 5 lb fillies allowance at Royal Ascot, is rated just 1 lb lower on a BCS rating of 114 – the same figure achieved by French raider Top Trip in the same race. 

The Artemis Gold Cup winner, Brown Panther, has flew up the rankings after his success at Glorious Goodwood and now sits on a mark of 113 along with Glen’s Diamond.

Many of these Series stars are set to clash on the pulsating finale to the 2013 season on QIPCO British Champions Day at Ascot on Saturday 19 October and you secure your place at Britain’s richest race day via the Buy Tickets page.