Nunthorpe victory was pure fantasy for Hannon back in 1992

Flying filly will always be remembered for her Nunthorpe heroics.

Much attention at York this week will surround The Platinum Queen – but while two-year-olds running in the Nunthorpe is not exactly a rare occurrence these days, back in 1992 it was still seen as a bold move.

Lyric Fantasy may not have been the first juvenile to beat the older generation, indeed Paris House had gone close just 12 months earlier – but she was the first two-year-old filly to do it and is certainly the point of reference when the topic is discussed these days.

It was a career highlight for a filly who was quite simply head and shoulders above others of her generation.

It may seem folly now given how dominant she was in that season, but her trainer Richard Hannon’s main concern was if she would even stay five furlongs given how quick she was.

“She was tiny, but she was a very fast filly,” said Hannon.

“We knew right from the start how fast she was and I knew if she got the five furlongs she was going to be very good. That was the problem, we thought, but she got it all right.”

Lyric Fantasy started off at a lowly level at Windsor at the end of April in 1992. Sent off at 3-1 she had no trouble making a winning debut, beating Ancestral Dancer who would go on to finish fourth in the Moyglare Stud Stakes.

Upped to Listed company straight away for the National Stakes at Sandown, racegoers got a real glimpse of her potential as she bolted up by six lengths.

Royal Ascot was next for the Queen Mary and yet again she gave her rivals no chance, making all the running and winning by five lengths.

Hannon then took advantage of the conditions of a new race in just its second year, the Weatherbys Super Sprint, a contest he came to dominate.

With weight carried determined by sales price, the fact Lyric Fantasy cost just 12,500 guineas meant she only carried 8st 11lb. Sent off the 2-5 favourite, her rivals never saw which way she went, despite the soft ground.

The Platinum Queen has looked a two-year-old in the mould of Lyric Fantasy
The Platinum Queen has looked a two-year-old in the mould of Lyric Fantasy (Adam Davy/PA)

“When she went to Sandown, that was when word got around and she won the Queen Mary just as easy,” said Hannon.

“There was a bit of a worry when we went to Newbury about the ground, but she had so much in hand it didn’t make a difference. She was very versatile.”

Next up was the race she will always be associated with. Getting the best part of two stone in weight from the older colts and geldings was attractive and her blistering speed was always going to make her hard to beat.

However, confusing things for Hannon was that he also had the second-favourite, Mr Brooks, who had won the July Cup and would win the Prix de l’Abbaye. He was to be ridden by a certain Lester Piggott.

“It was (owner) Lord Carnarvon’s idea to go for the Nunthorpe, they got a good weight allowance those two-year-olds so we decided to take it on,” said Hannon.

“Of course we were first and second that year.

“Mr Brooks was the best sprinter around in those days, but Lester said to me on the day ‘what did you f****** run that thing for’ in true Lester style!

“She didn’t have much weight, the filly, but Muis (Michael Roberts) didn’t want to give the ride up as he knew she’d win.”

As always with a juvenile the temptation was there to then step up in trip and connections gave it a whirl in the Cheveley Park a month later over six furlongs.

And in a normal year she would probably have won, as she only gave best to Sayyedati inside the final furlong, going down by two lengths to a filly of the very highest calibre. Sayyedati, of course, won the 1000 Guineas and beat the colts in the Prix Jacques le Marois and Sussex Stakes.

Hannon said: “It was just unfortunate she bumped into Sayyedati in the Cheveley Park, in another year she might have won. She was a good filly.

“She actually wasn’t beaten far in the Guineas (three lengths in sixth), but unfortunately she didn’t train on.

“We had some good days though, she was very good.”

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