All eyes were on the Berkshire course for the seasonal reappearance of Frankel and those who made the trip were not disappointed as the outstanding four-year-old colt demolished a strong field to enhance his record, with six of his wins now having come at the highest level.
The fears of Frankel's injury are now a distant memory as the world's best racehorse proved himself to be as good as ever with an imperious victory. Travelling well throughout having tracked pacemaker Bullet Train in the early stages, Frankel wasn't needed to be asked for full effort by Tom Queally, the pair pulling five lengths clear of top miler Excelebration at the line.
Frankel recorded a Timeform performance rating of 142 for Saturday's display, just 1 lb below his personal best, but he looks capable of surpassing those figures at some stage this season if required to do so. Frankel's next target appears likely to be the Queen Anne Stakes with Sir Henry Cecil keen to keep him over a mile for the time being, although the ten furlongs Prince of Wales's Stakes remains an option.
The other feature race on the Newbury card was the Aston Park Stakes won by Hawaafez, the filly taking the prize by four lengths from Meganisi. Hawaafez had looked on an upward curve before Newbury and she proved that to be accurate, recording a career-best rating of 111. The way she responded to pressure in the closing stages bodes well for her future, with the Ascot Gold Cup being talked of as a possible target for the Marcus Tregoning trained four-year-old. She has a bit to find with the market principals, however, and connections may be wise to keep other options in mind.
Valiant was perhaps the most exciting winner on the Newbury undercard, landing a maiden by just over a length for William Haggas and Joseph O'Brien. Valiant is bred to be useful and his debut performance was not far off, quickening well once the penny had dropped to defeat experienced pair Stature and Cathedral. He looks sure to progress and will be winning more races.
There were two listed contests at Newmarket on Saturday, the first of which, the Fairway Stakes, went the way of Thought Worthy who held off both Noble Mission and Rugged Cross in a thrilling finish. Thought Worthy didn't need to improve upon the form he had demonstrated when runner-up in the Sandown Classic Trial the time before but his willing attitude suggests he may be worth a try in better company, the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot possibly the next step.
Noble Mission, on the other hand, did demonstrate improvement but it wasn't quite enough to seal victory, Frankels' full-brother having to concede 5 lb to some clearly useful opposition. He tracked the leader before momentarily looking outpaced and then rallying well in the closing stages, his performance suggesting that a step up in trip to a mile and a half could be beneficial.
The other listed race was the King Charles II Stakes, a race which went the way of Aljamaaheer for Roger Varian. He looked much improved after his defeat at Newbury last time and recorded a performance that suggested he's a Group horse in the making. Held-up off the pace by Paul Hanagan, Aljamaaheer settled well before asserting inside the final furlong, always doing enough to hold off The Nile. The Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot looks a logical stepping stone for Sheikh Hamdan Al Makotum's son of Dubawi.
The handicap feature at Newmarket was won by Mince who left her challenge until late, storming home down the near side under Frankie Dettori to get up by a head to defeat Bartolomeu. Mince overcame unfavourable circumstances on Saturday and looked value for a greater winning margin.
The remainder of Saturday's Flat racing took place at Thirsk and Doncaster, while there were National Hunt meetings at Uttoxeter and Bangor.
There was racing at Ripon, Market Rasen and Stratford in Britain on Sunday, but the highlight of the afternoon came in Ireland where Fame And Glory made a successful reappearance to get the better of Unaccompanied in the listed Vintage Crop Stakes at Navan. Fame And Glory gave Unaccompanied 10 lb and a neck beating to earn himself a Timeform performance rating of 121, the four-time Group 1 winner looking on track to land back-to-back victories in the Ascot Gold Cup next month.
There was plenty of International action on offer this weekend too with I'll Have Another landing the the Preakness Stakes at Pimlico. I'll Have Another, who was again defeating Bodemeister having taking that one's measure in the Kentucky Derby, will bid to become the first US Triple Crown winner since Affirmed when he goes to post for the Belmont Stakes next month.
The Singapore International Meeting was another highlight this weekend with both the International Sprint and the Singapore Cup taking place at Kranji on Sunday. The first of those races served up a huge shock as Ato took the prize for Patrick Shaw, with the hot-favourite Krypton Factor unplaced under Kieren Fallon, the jockey reporting the softened ground to blame. The Singapore Cup was a little more predictable with France's Chinchon winning by three lengths under Olivier Doleuze. Former Chesham winner Zaidan finished in second, with Flax back in third.
Willie Mullins' Thousand Stars led home a stable one-two in the Prix la Barka on Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris day at Auteuil on Sunday, having finished second in the contest 12 months ago with Zaidpour and Tanais du Chenet filling the minor places. Zaidpour was sent-off the favourite but was unable to defeat the Paul Townend-ridden grey who scored by just over four lengths. The French Champion Hurdle could be next on the agenda for Thousand Stars, who took the contest 12 months ago.
The feature Grade 1 on the card went to 11-year-old Mid Dance who was winning the race for the third time.
