TIME analysis proved to be rather tricky at Newbury’s Lockinge meeting, with most of the times on the first day surprisingly slow, then a drying wind speeding up the surface, though not necessarily uniformly, on the Saturday.

That may explain why the overall times of the two races at a mile were modest compared to others on the straight course. Night Of Thunder posted a timefigure of just 100 in victory in the Lockinge but is better judged on the 125 he recorded at his peak last season.