Frankel

Stamina doubts kept him out of the Epsom Derby. Instead, he extended his unbeaten record in the St James's Palace Stakes, and then faced Canford Cliffs in what was billed as "The Duel on the Downs" at Goodwood: Frankel beat the world's top-rated older miler by five lengths. He closed the year with the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot.

As a four-year-old he ran five races, all Group 1, and won them all. The Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot —won by eleven lengths— was described by The Guardian as "possibly the greatest performance in the history of Thoroughbred racing". Timeform responded by raising his rating to 147, two pounds above Sea-Bird's previous all-time peak from 1965. The Juddmonte International Stakes at York, his first attempt over ten furlongs, was his eighth consecutive Group 1 victory, breaking the European record set by Rock of Gibraltar.

The final race of his career was the Champion Stakes at Ascot, won on soft going by a length and three quarters from Cirrus des Aigles. His trainer Sir Henry Cecil, in the midst of chemotherapy, sent him off with: "He's the best I've ever seen." Frankel retired to Juddmonte's Banstead Manor Stud in 2013 at an initial fee of £125,000; by 2024 he covers at £350,000.

As a sire he is responsible for 40 Group 1 winners and 12 Classic winners in the Northern Hemisphere, among them Cracksman (Champion Stakes x2), Adayar (Derby + King George), Hurricane Lane (Irish Derby + St Leger), Alpinista (Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe 2022) and Inspiral (Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf). He was Leading Sire in Great Britain and Ireland in 2021 and 2023, and World Sire of the Year in 2021.