THE best performance anywhere in the world recently – indeed, for a long time – came not at Royal Ascot but at Belmont on Saturday, and not, as might be expected, in the Belmont Stakes but in the Acorn Stakes, another Grade 1 but confined to fillies.

The unbeaten Gamine won it by 18 and three-quarter lengths in a time which broke the previous race record easily and was only just outside the track record for all horses despite the surface not being especially fast.