To the Ascot Racecourse, which the Queen of England visited this week to unveil a bronze statue in his honor, Frankel is the greatest flat racehorse of all time. In a three-year career, the thoroughbred has collected almost 3 million pounds ($4.8 million) in winnings.
Now that he’s retired, the real money comes.
“The key to all valuations in the horse business is that the breeding side is worth about 10 times the racing side,” said Bill Oppenheim, an independent thoroughbred market analyst. “He who has the best stallion is king.”
In this case, the king is a prince. Saudi Prince Khalid Abdullah Al Saud bred Frankel in 2008 and he’s become the crown jewel of a string of 259 stallions and mares valued at almost $400 million, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
Frankel is part of Al Saud’s Juddmonte Farms Group, one of the prince’s most valuable assets. Together with a 39.5 percent stake in pay-television provider OSN, held through a Riyadh- based investment group, Mawarid Holding, Al Saud has a net worth of at least $1 billion according to the index.
Based on recent transactions of syndicates owning similar- caliber studs, such as Tapit, Frankel is valued at $150 million.
“He’s priceless, he’s got it all,” said Nancy Sexton, a thoroughbred analyst. “He has the breeding, the looks and a very, very good family.”
Al Saud couldn’t be reached for comment.
Juddmonte CEO Douglas Erskine Crum disputed the valuation and declined to discuss the prince’s net worth, though he did talk about his breeding operations in an interview at Al Saud’s private office in a townhouse in London’s Knightsbridge section.
Successful Lineage