Flightline winning the Breeders Cup Classic by 8 lengths

You make money out of horse racing out of breeding. You do not make your money racing horses.

Flightline has run only 6 times in his career as a racehorse and he’s likely to be retired to stud now as the greatest horse you’ve never heard of.

Despite winning $6m last night by winning the Breeders Cup Classic, this undoubtedly brilliant animal has almost certainly run his last race and will now be put to the serious business of breeding future champions.

Flightline’s racing career is tiny compared to Secretariat, the doyen of the Americans or Frankel- the European equine superstar, but that’s because he did not have a career as a three year own taking on the American Triple Crown (the races the American public really cares about).

But that matters not when it comes to the economics of breeding. What we saw last night will be the pinnacle of Flightline’s career and if you weren’t watching at 9.40 on ITV4 , then here is what will go down in equine history as one of the greatest runs of all time.