Gold Cup glory for Courage Mon Ami

Frankel's Courage Mon Ami scooped the Gr.1 Ascot Gold Cup with a three-quarter length lead at the line over runner-up Coltrane.

Taken from the Thoroughbred Daily News, 23rd June 2023, by Tom Frary:

Frankie Dettori sealed his Royal Ascot immortality with a heart-stopping Gr.1 Gold Cup victory on Wathnan Racing's Courage Mon Ami in a brilliant piece of placing by the Gosdens. Thrown in at the deep end after a trio of wins on the all-weather and a Goodwood handicap by a cumulative margin of 13 and three-quarter lengths, the Oppenheimer-bred was up another six furlongs but his odds of 15-2 told the real story about the regard in which he is held at Clarehaven.

Always travelling strongly towards the rear as the 2021 hero Subjectivist took the race by the scruff of the neck, he was threaded up the rail to overhaul the favourite Coltrane inside the final furlong. Despite that veteran battling back, it was Royal winner number 79 and the ultimate sign-off for Dettori as he asserted to score by three-quarters of a length with Subjectivist fading to be three and three-quarter lengths behind in third. The win was the third Group 1 of the week for Frankel, with Juddmonte's kingpin seemingly assuming the mantle of the King of Royal Ascot.

"I thought it was a bridge too far from handicaps to Group 1, but I had the perfect trip," Dettori said. "I didn't expect it. The last five years I've had Stradivarius, so the pressure was on. This one I thought was a bit of a chancer, but John was confident. It's unbelievable, on my last year winning the Gold Cup."

Upsetting a host of proven Group 1 performers going so far into the unknown trip-wise in one of the world's toughest races would normally be an insurmountable task for a horse of such little seasoning, but Courage Mon Ami has rare quality. Settled on the fence as Stradivarius was 12 months ago, he was able to coast through most of the first two miles but as the stable's three-time winner had been in the last two renewals was also a hostage to fortune as the action hotted up. Denied an out approaching the home turn, Frankie was forced back to the inner but unlike last year saw it all open up in front of him like a symbolic parting of the waves.

Unleashing a 11.93 split between the three and the two to enter the fight, Courage Mon Ami had to switch around Coltrane as that rival took over from the tiring Lone Eagle but by now the fledgling stayer's blood was up. Ahead at the furlong marker, the winner was the freshest horse for the finale where Frankie's innate poise was evident despite all the emotion and pressure of the moment.

"I wanted to swing out wide but Stephane [Pasquier] kept me in and actually won me the race, because I cut the corner and it happened," Frankie added. "I got the splits when I wanted to and in fairness he showed a turn of foot. He's still a baby, but when Coltrane came back he picked up again. John's a great trainer and he does things like that."

Even by John Gosden's standards, this was a supreme piece of training and unlike anything in the history of the great race. "I don't think I'll try that again," he quipped in reference to the winner's inexperience. "He's always looked smart, but as you can tell by the size of him he's taken plenty of time to mature. You can't practise two and a half miles at home, but Frankie stayed cool and rode him cool in the dark down the inside, saving every inch."

He continued: "Courage Mon Ami is a lovely horse and has gone from the all-weather to Goodwood to here, so full credit to him. You'd like to think he's still maturing now and can still improve. [Bloodstock agent] Richard Brown has done a very clever job, as he was asked to find horses to come to Royal Ascot for Wathnan Racing and they are hard to buy. Gregory and Courage Mon Ami were owner-breeder horses and the costs of keeping a stud going means owners have to sell."