Blast From The Past: 2008 Champion Stakes

The Champion Stakes has seen plenty of 130+ performances since being transferred to Ascot - including Cirrus des Aigles, Frankel, Farhh and Almanzor last year - but the race had been in something of a decline during its final years at Newmarket, with only one performance of the last five Champion Stakes held at racing's headquarters reaching that level.

That performance came courtesy of New Approach in 2008, and his winning margin of six lengths is still the biggest in the race since the turn of the century. He also broke the track record (wind assisted) thanks to a good pace-making job from his stable companion Upton Grey and ran a career-best, bettering his wins in the likes of the Dewhurst, Derby, and Irish Champion Stakes (his timefigure was bettered over middle distances only by Duke of Marmalade's win in the Prince of Wales's Stakes that season).

The clock spoke favourably of New Approach's performance, but initially the form didn't look all that strong in behind the run-away winner, with the next two in the betting Pipedreamer and Russian Cross both below their best. That said, the race did stand up well enough in the longer term, with the second Twice Over doing his bit by winning the next two renewals.

The Champion Stakes provided a good opportunity for New Approach to end his career in a blaze of glory, with dominant five-time Group 1 winner Duke of Marmalade taking the Arc/Breeders' Cup options at the end of the season, and crack French filly Zarkava ending her career with an impressive win at Longchamp. New Approach's retirement was announced straight after the race, and he began his career as a stallion at Dalham Hall Stud, Newmarket. His best progeny to date has - by some way - been Dawn Approach, who was unbeaten in six starts at two (including in the Dewhurst Stakes) before he won the 2000 Guineas by five lengths.

Ben Fearnley's reviews the five best Champions Day performances