Six magnificent maidens to rival Frankel's memorable Newmarket debut

Saturday marks the 12th anniversary of the great Frankel's winning debut in a Newmarket maiden when he beat future King George and Eclipse winner Nathaniel by half a length.

That was the start of a stunning unbeaten 14-race career for the Sir Henry Cecil-trained star which included a staggering ten Group 1 wins.

Has there ever been a better maiden run than the one on that wet August evening at Newmarket's July course? Here are some contenders...

Pencader

Newbury, August 14, 1993

Future Group/Graded winners beaten:Hawajiss (Nassau Stakes), Piccolo (Nunthorpe Stakes, King's Stand Stakes), Make A Stand (Champion Hurdle), Erhaab (Derby)

Odds-on favourites have increasingly become the norm in maidens due to small field sizes, however when Peter Chapple-Hyam's Pencader was sent off 4-6 favourite at Newbury in 1993 he had 22 rivals to contend with.

Pencader duly obliged in what turned out to be a deep contest both in ability and in numbers. The runner-up Hawajiss won the Musidora and Nassau Stakes while the third-placed Piccolo dropped back in trip to become a high-class sprinter, winning the Nunthorpe and King's Stand. Also subsequently successful at the royal meeting, although in a race where stamina rather than speed was paramount, was the fourth Southern Power, who won the Ascot Stakes.

Make A Stand, then with Henry Candy, finished 11th before winning the Champion Hurdle four years later for Martin Pipe and Tony McCoy. Even the following year's Derby winner Erhaab was in there in 12th place, the worst result of his racing career.

For good measure the fourth, Southern Power, also went on to land the Ascot Stakes in a maiden that had a bit of everything.

Erhaab (7): 1994 Derby winner only finished 12th in Newbury maiden such was the strength of the contest

Presenting

Doncaster, September 9, 1994

Future Group winner beaten: Bahri (St James's Palace Stakes, Queen Elizabeth II Stakes)

Presenting is best known for being a multiple champion jumps stallion having sired two Gold Cup winners in War Of Attrition and Denman.

However, Presenting was a classy horse on the Flat in his own right, with a Group 2 win in the Geoffrey Freer Stakes his racing highlight. Owned and bred by George Strawbridge, Doncaster was where it all began for Presenting where he made a winning debut for John Gosden in 1994.

Presenting demonstrated the stamina so prevalent in his offspring to edge out Bahri, a future St James's Palace and Queen Elizabeth II Stakes winner, by half a length in a mile maiden.

Sinndar

Curragh, September 5, 1999

Future Group/Graded winners beaten:Media Puzzle (Melbourne Cup)

Sinndar's near flawless career began with a comfortable win in a maiden at the Curragh under Johnny Murtagh. He then went on to provide owner-breeder the Aga Khan with another Derby win in 2000, the first of Murtagh's three wins in the Epsom Classic.

Third in Sinndar's maiden was the rapidly staying-on third Media Puzzle, who caught the eye having been ninth of the 13 runners entering the straight.

Media Puzzle excelled when stepped up another mile in trip, landing the Melbourne Cup for Dermot Weld in 2002.

Waldgeist (red) denies Enable in the 2019 ArcCredit: Alan Crowhurst

Waldgeist

Chantilly, September 8, 2016

Future Group/Graded winners beaten:Called To The Bar (Prix Vicomtesse Vigier, 3 Prix Gladiateurs), Saldier (Morgiana Hurdle, Galway Hurdle)

Waldgeist is most famous for foiling Enable's historic hat-trick bid in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in 2019. While Waldgeist is notorious for his final appearance at Longchamp, his first in a Chantilly maiden also catches the eye.

The son of Galileo justified long odds-on favouritism in the mile event, beating future multiple Group winner Called To The Bar by two lengths. The race also featured the debut of Willie Mullins' future dual Grade 1-winning hurdler Saldier, who finished in fourth for Tony Castanheira and also landed last year's Galway Hurdle carrying top weight

You would be hard-pressed to find another maiden which has gone on to produce an Arc and Galway Hurdle winner.

Cracksman

Newmarket, October 19, 2016

Future Group winner beaten:Stradivarius (3 Ascot Gold Cups, 4 Goodwood Cups)

Cracksman emulated his father Frankel by making a winning debut over a mile at Newmarket in a maiden that included star stayer and stablemate Stradivarius.

Frankie Dettori was in the enviable position of choosing between two colts who would possess the ability to go on and win 11 Group 1s between them. He chose Stradivarius, who was outpaced over the inadequate trip, with Cracksman running out a nice winner under Robert Havlin.

Given his stellar pedigree and the manner of his maiden success, much was expected of Cracksman and he didn't disappoint, with wins in the Prix Ganay, Coronation Cup and the Champion Stakes twice.

Cracksman: the son of Frankel beat Stradivarius in a Newmarket maidenCredit: Edward Whitaker

Westbrook

Los Alamitos, April 18, 2016

Future Group/Graded winners beaten:Accelerate (Breeders' Cup Classic), Arrogate (Breeders' Cup Classic, Dubai World Cup, Pegasus World Cup)

A Los Alamitos maiden special weights race where the winner would never taste victory again seems an unlikely candidate for a 'strong' maiden.

However, although Westbrook would never win again after taking the 6f dirt contest, the two immediately in behind him would both go on to be Breeders' Cup Classic winners.

The second, Accelerate, was a five-time Grade 1 winner culminating in his Breeders' Cup success at Churchill Downs in 2018. Arrogate was behind Accelerate on his first outing but trumped him to Breeders' Cup honours by taking the Classic two years' prior in 2016.

The Juddmonte colt also won the Pegasus and Dubai World Cup, surely surpassing what was expected of him after being beaten on his debut.

Read this next:

Last week's tracker horses - including a 925,000gns son of Frankel

Sign up to receive On The Nose, our essential daily newsletter, from the Racing Post. Your unmissable morning feed, direct to your email inbox every morning.