Frankel to resume training shortly

Frankel, the undefeated Horse of the Year in England in 2011, will resume training in coming days after undergoing “exploratory scans” that showed no injuries after a training scare last week, trainer Sir Henry Cecil said on his website on Wednesday.

Frankel, unbeaten in nine starts, including five Group 1 races, suffered an undisclosed minor injury while training in Newmarket, England, on April 11. The injury led to swelling and soreness on the back of his lower right-front leg and left the 4-year-old out of training for a week.

Cecil said that Frankel was scanned to be “100 percent” injury-free.

“He is going back into exercise this weekend,” Cecil said in a statement. “He’s in the Lockinge Stakes, and I would love to go there, but we will feel our way and hope.”

The Group 1 Lockinge Stakes at Newbury Racecourse in England on May 19 has been mentioned as Frankel’s first start of 2012. Owned by Juddmonte Farms, Frankel has not started since winning the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot last October.

Esentepe upsets in Nell Gwyn

Esentepe, a 28-1 outsider, won the first stakes of her 11-race career in Wednesday’s Group 3 Nell Gwyn Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at Newmarket.

Ridden by Pat Dobbs for trainer Richard Hannon, Esentepe stalked pacesetter Excelette for the first four furlongs of the seven-furlong race, took the lead with a quarter-mile remaining, and was fully extended to win by a neck over 20-1 Nayarra. Pimpernel, the 3-1 favorite, finished 11th in the field of 13.

By Oratorio, Esentepe is not nominated for the English 1000 Guineas at Newmarket on May 6.