'Godolphin's homebred renaissance? There are two factors - Appleby and Dubawi'

Godolphin’s dazzling success in its formative years emanated from a small string of hand-picked older horses, many of them appropriated to the cause. There was Balanchine and Cape Verdi, both bought from Robert Sangster, together with Daylami, who was acquired from the Aga Khan. It was a formula that delivered spectacular results for Godolphin’s Moulton Paddocks stables throughout the 1990s.

In 2021 the same was true of Charlie Appleby, Godolphin’s flagship trainer who will top the charts in Britain for the first time this year. But there was one significant difference. Appleby’s plunder was gained largely by Godolphin’s homebred horses.

In a stellar year for Sheikh Mohammed’s outfit, Appleby saddled the winners of 17 Group or Grade 1 races around the world. They were accrued by 11 individual horses, eight of whom were homebred.