At Royal Ascot there was a falling out between two of racing’s leading figures. John Gosden had taken issue with Frankie Dettori’s Gold Cup ride aboard Stradivarius and had not been reticent in sharing those thoughts.

Trawlerman, meanwhile, was in the midst of a conflict of his own, his adversary an inanimate one as he had taken a distinct and enduring dislike to the starting stalls.