Wondermare Enable Retired

The curtain has come down on Enable's glittering career after connections opted against having one final start and retired the wondermare Oct. 12 with immediate effect.

Khalid Abdullah's hugely popular 6-year-old, winner of 11 races at the highest level, secured her legacy as one of racing's brightest stars with back-to-back victories in the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1), a record three wins in the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes (G1) at Ascot, and a game score in the Longines Breeders' Cup Turf (G1T) at Churchill Downs.

For the second successive year, Enable failed in her bid for a historic third success in the Arc this month when finishing sixth at ParisLongchamp on desperate ground.

With her whole season built around the Arc, it was expected that she would bow out in Paris, but afterwards connections left the door ajar for one final appearance, possibly on Saturday's QIPCO British Champions Day at Ascot.

Trainer John Gosden said the final decision would be made by Abdullah and on Monday the leading owner's Juddmonte operation announced Enable has been retired.

Juddmonte CEO Douglas Erskine Crum said: "After consulting her trainer John Gosden and his racing manager Teddy Grimthorpe, Prince Khalid has decided that Enable will be retired from racing and will now join the Juddmonte broodmare band to be covered by Kingman in 2021."

Paying tribute to the brilliant mare, Gosden said: "Enable has retired happy and sound after an extraordinary career. We all here at Clarehaven Stables have been very fortunate to be with her for the past five years and to appreciate her strong character and athletic prowess.

"Her daily presence has been a joy and her record in group 1s including four Oaks, three King Georges, two Arcs, an Eclipse, and a Breeders' Cup Turf is a marvel and unprecedented. We look forward to visiting her nearby in her new career."

Enable helped rejuvenate the career of 49-year-old riding legend Frankie Dettori with the jockey describing his bond with the mare as stronger than any other horse he has ridden.

Grimthorpe added: "She has brought so much joy to everyone who has been involved with her. Her elegance and forceful personality have been nurtured by John and his team at Clarehaven, especially by Imran (Shahwani) who has looked after her with such calm and devotion. 

"In her, Frankie found a willing partner to execute her ability on the racecourse. Her CV withstands the closest of inspections, very few can match what she has given to racing."

As a titan of the turf, Enable rose from humble beginnings with her racecourse debut taking place on the all-weather at Newcastle in November 2016.

Sent off at 7-2 and ridden by Robert Havlin, the daughter of Nathaniel got off to the perfect start on her only outing as a 2-year-old.

The following season she was only third on her comeback at Newbury, but got back to winning ways when stepped up in trip in the Arkle Finance Cheshire Oaks.

She went on to the Investec Oaks (G1) at Epsom as one of the leading candidates and produced a marvelous performance, winning by five lengths in a dramatic thunderstorm.

Three more top-level victories followed in her undefeated 3-year-old campaign—in the Darley Irish Oaks (G1), King George, and Darley Yorkshire Oaks—before her first trip to France for the Arc.

Staged at Chantilly during Longchamp's redevelopment, Enable made the most of her age and sex allowances with a dominant victory over Cloth of Stars.

In 2018, her return to action was delayed until September and she warmed up for her Arc defense by beating Crystal Ocean in the 188Bet September Stakes (G3) at Kempton. 

Although her preparations for Longchamp were far from the ideal, she showed the determination of a true champion to hold on for a short-head victory over Sea of Class.

Her global appeal was enhanced by a successful trip to the Breeders' Cup at Churchill Downs, where she beat old rival Magical to become the only horse to win the Arc and the Breeders' Cup Turf in the same year.

The following year brought further group 1 wins in the Coral-Eclipse (G1), the King George—following an epic duel with Crystal Ocean—and the Yorkshire Oaks. But the campaign ended in rare disappointment as Waldgeist denied Enable an unprecedented third Arc success.  

After Abdullah's sporting decision to race on as a 6-year-old with the season revolving around an Arc return, Enable finished only second behind Ghaiyyath in the Coral-Eclipse before normal service was resumed with wins in the King George—for a record third time—and another September Stakes success.

She was sent off at a shade of odds-on for her date with destiny in the Arc, but failed to fire in sixth with connections left to rue the very heavy ground and lack of pace in the race.

That Enable raced in four consecutive Arcs was great testament to Gosden's handling and her regular trips across the Channel made her a firm favorite with French racing fans.

Reacting to the news of her retirement, France Galop tweeted: "A huge thank you from all in French racing to Juddmonte Farms and Enable, as well as to Frankie Dettori and John Gosden. The dual Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner, who ran in the race four times, has made a great contribution to the reputation of our championship race."

Enable raced 19 times over five seasons and recorded 15 wins, including 11 at group/grade 1 level, and amassed £10,724,320 (US$14,062,824) in prize-money.

Those earnings are a record for a horse trained in Europe, exceeding Highland Reel. The world record is £13,622,542 ($17,422,600) by the late Arrogate —another champion owned by Juddmonte.

A Royal Engagement

That Enable will be covered by Banstead Manor Stud star Kingman next season is not a surprise, given that the Juddmonte stallion has enjoyed another scintillating season with Palace Pier and Persian King landing group 1 wins around Europe.

As Enable, a Juddmonte homebred out of the listed-winning Concentric, is inbred 3x2 to Sadler's Wells, it effectively ruled fellow Juddmonte resident Frankel out of the equation, while Invincible Spirit's son Kingman is free from such blood.

Enable is the fifth foal out of Concentric, a sister to Prix de Royallieu Hotel du Golf Barriere (G2) winner and Prix de Diane Hermes-French Oaks (G1) runner-up Dance Routine, who herself has produced the multiple group 1 winner Flintshire , now a stallion in the United States at Hill 'n' Dale Farms. 

The pair are out of of Prix de Royaumont (G3) winner Apogee, a daughter of Shirley Heights and Epsom and Irish Oaks second Bourbon Girl and therefore a half sister to Grand Prix de Chantilly (G2) scorer Daring Miss and Shining Bright, the dam of Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud (G1) winner Spanish Moon.

Concentric has since produced the useful Dansili gelding Centroid, Tattersalls Musidora Stakes (G3) runner-up Entitle, also by Dansili, plus Portrush, a winning daughter of Frankel. 

She also has the 2-year-old Sea The Stars colt Derab, who was a promising second on his debut at Ascot last month, a yearling full brother to Enable, and visited Sea The Stars last year.

Enable is from the first crop of Nathaniel, who like his daughter was trained by Gosden.