Equinox's champion status never in doubt - but handicappers have been surprisingly generous with inflated figure

Equinox is rightly recognised as the standout performer of last year in the 2023 Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings, the Japanese superstar rewarded for a flawless campaign with a mighty mark of 135, matching the figure awarded to 2022 turf champion Baaeed and rating him the joint-best turf horse since Frankel.

That Equinox would be crowned world champion was never in doubt, the four-year-old having led the rankings since an impressive defeat of Westover in the Dubai Sheema Classic last March, but his rating of 135 does come as something of a surprise.

He was underrated for much of the year on an official mark of 129, but that 6lb hike looks a bit of a stretch, with the initial 133 that was suggested after his brilliant win in the Japan Cup in late November a better fit relative to his Racing Post Rating of 134.