'He really is our Frankel - he's the real deal' - City Of Troy earns lofty comparisons after Dewhurst demolition job

There were some outrageous statements being bandied around the Rowley Mile after City Of Troy's formidable victory in the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes, but part-owner Michael Tabor cut through all the noise as he declared that Coolmore had found their Frankel.

It was a huge declaration, yet after City Of Troy had maintained his unbeaten record with an effortless three-and-a-half-length success, and after listening to Aidan O'Brien and Ryan Moore speak of the son of Justify like some sort of extraterrestrial, it was not impossible to believe Tabor might be speaking the truth. 

It was 13 years ago that Frankel won the same race by a shorter winning margin on his fourth and final start at two. He won his next ten races over the two years which followed to be recognised as arguably the greatest Flat horse of the modern era. 

City Of Troy has a long, long way to go if he is to climb to a similar summit, but with the 2,000 Guineas, Derby and St Leger all being mentioned as potential future targets, literally anything is possible at this stage. 

"He really is our Frankel," said Tabor, among the most respected figures in global racing and believing every word he was saying. "I know the way Aidan speaks. We're all optimists, but this horse is special. No question, he's the real deal. 

"That's what we feel at this moment. Maybe down the line we'll have egg on our face, but I like to talk before the event and I really feel this horse could be anything."

City Of Troy and Ryan Moore are out on their own at NewmarketCredit: Mark Cranham

As far as bookmakers are concerned, City Of Troy is the 2,000 Guineas and Derby winner in waiting. Paddy Power going evens (from 5-2) for the Guineas and 9-4 (from 7-2) for the Derby.

The same firm offer 10-1 about City Of Troy becoming the first since Nijinsky in 1970 to land the Triple Crown of Guineas, Derby and St Leger, and Tabor felt that Holy Grail was within reach with this horse.

"I don't see why not," he added. "It's always been John Magnier's dream to win the Triple Crown and we were very unlucky with Camelot being beaten all those years ago in the third leg. The St Leger can maybe be a trip too far but, for me, the Guineas and the Derby are very realistic, and any top race after that."  

Tabor's comments regarding Frankel were quick to reverberate around the winner's enclosure, but neither Moore or O'Brien were about to dampen enthusiasm. 

While it is far from unusual to hear O'Brien speak glowingly in the aftermath of big-race success, it is far rarer to hear Moore supply the superlatives, but he wasn't about to downplay City Of Troy's unique attributes.     

City Of Troy is not for catching in the DewhurstCredit: Alan Crowhurst

"He's impressed me on all his starts and the first day I rode him [at the Curragh] he did something a horse has never done to me before," said the rider. "I couldn't stop him, and that's never happened. 

"When we ran here on the July course [in the Superlative Stakes] I thought it was as impressive a two-year-old performance as I've experienced at that time of the year. Coming here, I couldn't see how anything could beat him, but the worry was the holding ground as he'd been off a long time, but his performance was commanding again." 

Then came the Frankel question.

"For me, that's the best racehorse I ever saw," Moore said of Sir Henry Cecil's champion. "I stupidly said to someone privately on the July course [after City Of Troy had won] that I hadn't seen a two-year-old do that since him. It's a silly comparison to make and this horse has a long way to go, but he's exciting at the moment and what he's done so far has impressed me. He's a very rare horse I think." 

And so to O'Brien, who looked decidedly pensive before the race as he worried about the suitability of the ground for City Of Troy, but ended up with a record-equalling eighth Dewhurst success and a colt destined for greatness.  

"He would absolutely hate that ground, but we had nowhere else to run him," said the master trainer. "Thank God we ran. He was entitled to get beat [on that ground], but he never gets tired and I've never seen a horse like that. 

"You need tractor tyres to go on that ground, and he hasn't got that. What he does have is a jet engine and his engine pushed his action through. We usually push them to the limit, but we could never find his limit. That's why he's very unusual."

O'Brien said it was beyond doubt that City Of Troy was the best juvenile to set foot in Ballydoyle during his reign and, like Tabor, is a Triple Crown believer.

"I would imagine there's no real boundary to his stamina," he added. "He's by Justify and it's a trait of the sire that they just keep going. He's out of a Galileo mare as well and something to really look forward to. We don't know where the limit is."

Read these next:

Aidan O'Brien says City Of Troy is the best two-year-old he's trained - could he really be Coolmore's Frankel? 

Analysis: City Of Troy has the potential to be spellbinding - but are there any dangers to a 2,000 Guineas-Derby double? 

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