So many options for Japan's new superstar Equinox - how disconcerting Britain isn't one of them

A wise trainer once told me you can comment on another trainer's wife but never discuss their horses. He was probably referring more to insults than praise but it has been refreshing to hear so many different trainers lauding Equinox as the best thoroughbred on the planet since his stunning Sheema Classic success in Dubai just over a week ago.

Slice it or dice any way you like, defeating an Irish Derby winner by three and a half lengths in a common canter means it is a fair assessment to think Equinox is cut from a different cloth.

It was speaking to William Haggas the day after that performance that brought home just how special this horse might be. When the man who trained Baaeed to a near flawless career says Equinox's performance in Dubai was the "greatest" he had ever witnessed live over a mile and a half, you are inclined to believe all the hype. And Haggas was not alone within the professional ranks; in fact, his Newmarket neighbour Roger Varian was hailing Equinox the best of the best long before the Japanese colt mastered Meydan.