IF you had been betting on whether or not Enable would stay in training next year, you would have bet long odds-on that she would, long odds-against that she wouldn’t.

All the vibes in that regard were positive. John Gosden was hopeful, Frankie Dettori was optimistic. Nevertheless, we hadn’t heard from Khalid Abdullah, so it was good to hear the announcement on Monday morning that she would.

It’s great news. It’s brilliant that her owner/breeder has decided to allow her race on at five. Her presence will enhance any race, and occasion, any season. But it makes sense from a commercial perspective too.

In 2017, Enable earned the equivalent of around £4 million in prize money. In 2018, she earned another £4 million, and she raced just three times. Not that it is likely that her first foal would be sold, and it’s not all about commercials anyway, but that’s how much an Enable foal – added to a chosen stallion’s covering fee – would have to be worth potentially in order for the decision to retire her to the paddocks this year to make commercial sense.

Add to that the shot at another Arc that goes with staying in training.

An attempt to complete the hat-trick, a shot at sporting history, an unprecedented achievement, the first horse ever to win three of them.

You can only will her on.

Quote of the week

“He’s so fast, I think I’d rather run him in the King’s Stand than the King George.”

Nicky Henderson on Altior