Nunthorpe reflections A Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes that will live long in the memory had Frankie Dettori "in shock" at defeat and Sir Mark Prescott celebrating victory from afar as Marsha outpointed Lady Aurelia in a thrilling finish to the York showpiece. Heath House handler Prescott suffered a number of near-misses on Friday afternoon, but luck was on his side as Marsha prevailed by a nose after going toe-to-toe with Wesley Ward's hot favourite in the five-furlong affair. Lady Aurelia was all the rage to add to her King's Stand Stakes victory at Royal Ascot, where Marsha was third, with Battaash expected to give her most to think about in the Group One contest. However, it was Marsha who was produced with a perfectly-timed charge by Luke Morris to grab the glory by a nose in a photo - despite Dettori clearly thinking he had prevailed on the American ace, celebrating as he crossed the line. A crestfallen Dettori said: "I'm in shock, I thought I'd won a neck" - but it was a very different emotion for the absent Prescott, who was thrilled to see his charge topple one of the best sprinters in the world. Speaking from Ireland, where he was on a pre-arranged trip to view yearlings, Prescott, winning the race for the second time after Pivotal in 1996, told Press Association Sport: "They are two very good fillies and I'm very lucky the short head went my way. "What a difference a short head makes - all four of my runners this afternoon have been in photos and the other three have been beaten. "I think she's been tremendously consistent, she's been the best of the rest every time, really. To finish in front of Lady Aurelia on a flat track is a great performance. "Lady Aurelia is a marvellous filly, so to be able to say we have arguably the fastest filly in the northern hemisphere, we are very lucky. "She probably won't run again before the Abbaye now." Ward was quick to nominate the Breeders' Cup as Lady Aurelia's next target, but Prescott was non-committal on the chances of a Stateside rematch. He added: "She's owned by Elite (Racing Club) so she will probably have to be sold in the autumn, but if it did come up soft, it (Breeders' Cup) might be something to think about, but I think it will be the Abbaye next." Morris admitted he thought he had just lost out. He said of the 8-1 winner: "I wasn't sure and when I saw Frankie put his arm up, I was gutted as I thought he had won, then someone said congratulations to me and it turned into jubilation. "Her performance in the Palace House was exceptional, but she's been a bit below par since. Going down today, though, she felt more on her mettle and more alive. "Sir Mark is a genius. I have been with him five years now and we've had some great days." Ward was proud of Lady Aurelia in defeat, and full of praise for the winner. He said: "She's a true champion, these things happen. She ran a brilliant race and the other filly ran us down. "I think we got beat fair and square. It happens, I'm not going to make excuses. She's run a fantastic race and there were no issues. "She broke out of the stalls a little sideways, but soon got going again. She's done everything well, but take nothing away from the winner. "We were just beaten by the hair on my chinny chin chin. "I thought we'd won simply because Frankie did, but that's racing. I have been second in this race twice now and it's tough to take. "Hopefully I will be back another day and we will look towards the Breeders' Cup now." For his part, Battaash proved difficult to load and, after racing prominently, he finished out of the frame, with his stablemate Cotai Glory claiming third, with trainer Charlie Hills feeling he had possibly paid for his pre-race antics. He said: "Battaash got caught saddling up and became agitated after that. "Cotai Glory has run a big race and was fourth in it last year. There's talk he could go to New Zealand and stand at stud."
