STEVE DENNIS

Weblog: Desperate measures for desperate times

Harbinger the best horse ever - or maybe not

Anyone know that old tune by the mighty Johnny Nash? There are more questions than answers. You betcha. Anyone see that King George? Oh wow.

What have we here?

Do we have the greatest horse ever, far better than Sea The Stars, Sea-Bird, Pegasus and Secretariat rolled into one? Yes, you have to say, given that he won the premier all-aged Group 1 in Britain by 11 lengths in course-record time.

Harbinger is the best horse anyone alive has ever seen. It's inescapable, unequivocal. A faster time than Nijinsky, a wider margin. A faster time than Brigadier Gerard, wider margin. A faster time than Montjeu, wider margin. Anyone else? Oh, yeah, a faster time than Ribot, wider margin.

What about that Workforce, then? Smashed the course record in the Derby but could barely beat the pacemaker home at Ascot. What does that sayabout the Derby? What does that say about course records?

But, hang on, no-one else has called Harbinger the great to end all greats, 300 years of breeding distilled into one horse's frame to bring us the ultimate running machine.

Perhaps he isn't. Perhaps that means that the Derby was the worst Group 1 run in Britain for years, a donkey Derby. Workforce a winner by default - and a course record at Epsom? Do me a favour. Measure the course again. A quicker time than Sea The Stars but still no bloody good. Ha ha ha ha ha.

You can't have it both ways. Either Harbinger is the greatest and Workforce ran his race at Ascot, or Harbinger surfed the wave of the worst crop of three-year-olds for many years and lucked out in sizzling style.

And just what is this rubbish about course records? Let's get it out there now - the time a horse records in a race has absolutely no bearing whatsoever on its ability. Finish.

So a few things we can safely say are . . .

1. It appears that the Derby was garbage. Anyone who says that Workforce was ill today, or didn't run his race, or was disadvantaged in some way, is talking equal garbage. Look at the race again. He was off the bit three furlongs out, and Cape Blanco smashed him - just as he did in the Dante Stakes. Great horses do not finish fifth, thrashed out of sight. Even very good horses don't finish fifth, thrashed out of sight.

2. Harbinger is a very good horse. Whether you'd fancy him to do that again, in a race populated by decent horses instead of two moderate three-year-olds, a pacemaker, and two horses who were never put intothe race with a chance, is up to you. You can have 2-1 for the Arc, if you want it. But he's still a star.

3. The bookmakers haven't a clue. Workforce is 10-1 for the Arc, but Cape Blanco 16-1. That is just stupid. It appears that they believe Workforce didn't run his race at Ascot. If he didn't, then why is Harbinger 2-1?

4. Course records are irrelevant. Just thought I'd pop that in again. You know who holds the course record for the 2,000 Guineas? Mister Baileys. The 1,000 Guineas? Ghanaati. The Gold Cup? Rite Of Passage. Champions all, no? And who holds the Ascot course record at 1m2f? Perfect Stride. He's better than Dubai Millennium, then. Case dismissed. Verdict: bunk.

So there we are. Harbinger is better than we thought he was, Workforce worse than we thought he was. A winning margin of 11 lengths occurs when a very good horse at the top of his game meets moderate ones. And seeing is not the same as believing. See Epsom and Ascot for examples.

Right, so. Time to put Johnny Nash back on the stereo.

Read my column in the Racing Postevery Sunday