Frankel shortens as Bassett misses Guineas

OPPOSITION to Frankel in the Qipco 2000 Guineas a week on Saturday is becoming increasingly thin on the ground with Wootton Bassett the latest to drop out from the Newmarket Classic.

There had been a sense of unease about the colt’s prospects ever since Richard Fahey revealed he had missed work after a setback in February and the trainer admitted last week he was struggling to get him ready.

Wootton Bassett, who joins Godolphin’s Dubai Prince as a Guineas defector this week, won all five starts as a two-year-old, culminating in the Group One Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere at Longchamp last October.