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In horse racing parlance, the term ‘headgear’ refers to specific items of tack that a horse wears, predictably, on its head during a race and, in most cases, must be officially declared on the racecard beforehand. Of course, every racehorse wears a bridle, which fits over its head and to which the bit and reins are attached, thereby assisting the jockey to effectively control the horse. Strictly speaking, a bridle is an item of headgear but, as a basic necessity, does not need to be declared. The only other racing headgear does not need to be declared is a noseband or, in other words, a strap that fits over the nose and secures the bridle, which is commonly used to deter horses from opening their mouths.

Racehorse trainers apply headgear to their charges in an effort to improve their performance on the racecourse and various types are available to deal with issues arising from inexperience, lack of concentration and/or resolution and other temperamental difficulties. Blinkers, for example, come in several basic designs, but are essentially semi-circular plastic or leather cups, which are attached to the bridle on either side of the head, with the intention of reducing the peripheral vision of the horse. Thus, the horse is encouraged to focus on what is happening immediately in front of it, rather than the to the side or to the rear.

A visor is similar in design to blinkers, but features a slit in each eye cup, such that the horse has partial peripheral vision and remains aware of rivals on either side or to its rear. Cheekpieces, a.k.a. French blinkers, consist of strips of sheepskin attached to either side of the bridle and perform a similar function to blinkers or a visor, but are less restrictive than either. The other items of headgear that must be declared on the racecard are a tongue-tie which, as the name suggests, ties down the tongue to prevent breathing difficulties, and a hood, which covers the ears and restricts the extraneous noise the horse can hear.

Flightline was retired from racing immediately after his easy, 8¼-length victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Keeneland on November 5, 2022. That victory took his career record to a ‘perfect’ 6-6 and his earnings to in excess of £3.3 million; he is currently standing at Lane’s End Farm in Versailles, Kentucky for a stud fee of $200,000, or £160,000, per covering.

According to Timeform, the impeccably bred son of record-breaking American sire Tapit was the fifth highest-rated horse to run on the Flat since Timeform ratings were first published in 1948. His Timeform Annual Rating of 143 was inferior only to those awarded to Brigadier Gerard and Tudor Minstrel (both 144), Sea-Bird (145) and, of course, Frankel (147). Unlike his illustrious predecessors, Flightline raced exclusively on dirt, but the main problem with accurately assessing his ability is that he won his six starts by an aggregate of 71 lengths, none of them by less than six, and was never seriously challenged.

Trained by John Sadler in California and ridden, exclusively, by Flavien Prat, Flightline was unraced as a juvenile, but quickly made up for lost time in his three- and four-year-old seasons. He made his debut, as a three-year-old, in a maiden special weight race, over six furlongs, at Santa Anita Park on April 25, 2021, winning by an eye-watering 13½ lengths. A bruised foot kept him off the track until September 5 but, on his return to action, he turned an optional claiming race, again over six furlongs, at Del Mar into another procession, winning by 13 lengths. On December 26, he was stepped up to seven furlongs in the Grade 1 Malibu Stakes at Santa Anita, but once again justified odds-on favouritism by drawing clear in the straight for an easy, 11½-length win.

As a four-year-old, Flightline won the Grade 1 Memorial Handicap, over a mile, at Belmont Park by six lengths, the Grade 1 Pacific Classic Stakes, over a mile and a quarter, at Del Mar by a ‘brilliant’ 19 lengths and the aforementioned Breeders’ Cup Classic, over the same distance. He was, no doubt, exceptional, but just how good is really anyone’s guess.

Born in Banbridge, Co. Down on June 18, 1957, former jockey Ray Cochrane enjoyed a memorable 26-year career in the saddle, during which he rode the better part of 1,500 winners, including Midway Lady, trained by Ben Hanbury, in the 1,000 Guineas and the Oaks in 1986 and Kahyasi, trained by Luca Cumani, in the Derby in 1988. Cochrane was forced to retire, on medical advice, in October, 2000, after sustaining a back injury in two heavy falls. Following his retirement from race riding, he began a new career as agent for Lanfranco ‘Frankie’ Dettori, a position he held until May, 2020, by which time he was 62 years old.

Yet, for all his exploits elsewhere, Cochrane will probably always be best remembered for his heroism during a tragic incident that occurred at Newmarket Racecourse on June 1, 2000. Alongside Dettori and pilot Patrick Mackey, he boarded a Piper Seneca light aircraft on the July Strip at Newmarket, alongside the so-called ‘Devil’s Ditch’, for a short flight to Goodwood Aerodrome in West Sussex.

However, moments after take-off, the aircraft reportedly struck the 25-foot high dyke, cartwheeled to the ground and burst into flames on impact. Cochrane suffered minor burns, bruising and blurred vision during the crash, but nonetheless managed to pull Dettori, who had suffered a broken ankle, to safety through the luggage compartment before returning for Mackey, who was trapped in the wreckage. By that stage, though, a severe fire had taken hold, such that neither Cochrane nor emergency workers could reach Mackey, 52, who sadly died at the scene.

Cochrane later played down his involvement, saying, ‘I just did what I had to do. My friends were in trouble and I had to do something to help.’ Dettori, though, said of his weighing room colleague, ‘Not only has he been a great friend, I owe my life to him.’ In January, 2002, Cochrane received the Queen’s Commendation For Bravery as the result of his selfless actions.

Traditionally the first Classic of the season, the 2,000 Guineas was founded by the Jockey Club, under the stewardship of Sir Charles Bunbury (previously of Derby fame), in 1809. Notwithstanding the 1999 renewal, which was transferred to the July Course during the redevelopment of the traditional Rowley Mile course, has been run at Newmarket, a.k.a. the ‘Home of Horseracing’, without interruption, ever since.

Granted that the 2,000 Guineas is contested, at least in theory, by the crème de la crème of the three-year-old generation, participants run off level weights, albeit that fillies receive a 5lb weight-for-sex allowance from their male counterparts. Colts carry 9st 0lb and fillies carry 8st 9lb. In other words, the 2,000 Guineas is a test of class, such that, while its position in the racing calendar – traditionally in early May – means that fitness, or lack of it, inevitably plays a part, long-priced winners are few and far between. There’s nothing gamblers like more than a big priced winner or a big jackpot on the likes of jokacasino pokies online real money.

That said, the longest-priced winner in the history of the 2,000 Guineas was, in fact, the Rockefella colt Rockavon, who, in 1961, caused a major shock when beating 21 opponents by two lengths at odds of 66/1. Trained by George Boyd in Dunbar, East Lothian and ridden by Norman Stirk, Rockavon remains the only British Classic winner to be trained in Scotland. However, despite having ‘humbled the pride of England, Ireland and France’, at least according to the ‘Glasgow Herald’ of the day, Racing Post historian John Randall later took a rather dim view of the merit of his performance.

Randall described the field assembled for the 1961 2,000 Guineas as ‘abysmal by Classic standards’ and went still further, dismissing Rockavon as ‘the worst horse to win the race not only since 1945, but since Victorian times’. Granted that the places at Newmarket were filled by Prince Tudor and Time Greine, at 66/1 and 25/1, respectively and that Rockavon won just one more race – a match against the non-descript four-year-old Julia’s Hamlet in the Heddon Stakes at Newmarket – it’s difficult to argue with his opinion.