He's been called a freak, a phenomenon, a monster among equine inferiors and on a sensational opening day at Royal Ascot, he threatens to steal the show from some towering, established acts. You know him as budding superstar Frankel, I think of him as Frankelstein and the St James's Palace is at the mercy of the beast.

That narrow Newmarket success on debut last August seems a sepia tinted memory now in the gushing wake of several swashbuckling wins since. Frankel 1.35 on betfair has been the dial-a-distance horse of the past year, hammering rivals with ease and scalping his last five fields by more than 35 lengths. His double digit win in the Group 2 Royal Lodge at Ascot last September defied logic as he raced freely before attacking on the outside through the hottest part of the race and still slammed some decent rivals derisively. The runner-up Klammer went on to win a Group 3 while third-placed Treasure Beach has done likewise this term while narrowly failing to win the Derby.

Frankel's win in the Dewhurst completed a memorable juvenile season and sent him into winter quarters as one of the hottest 2000 Guineas favourites in years. Henry Cecil was comparing him eye-to-eye with some of his best and scribes prepared headlines for a colt considered more than just a likely classic winner. Some of us wondered if Frankel's more egotistical traits might undermine his prospects, whether he could contain the monster within; all looked to Newmarket in early May.

Come that May afternoon, I was gathered round a mobile phone with a group of pals on a golf course in France. I remember that moment though as it were now; all bulging eyes and adult exclamations as we wondered at what we were seeing. I thought perhaps we had tuned into some prehistoric racing marvel courtesy of YouTube; not so, as Frankel blitzed his mortals to win a Guineas classic by the widest margin since 1947. Pegasus was alive and kicking. Still, that zealous streak laced the display as the monster roared again and that potential vulnerability is what St James's Palace rivals will cling too.

Dubawi Gold 13.0 is back for another crack, having squandered a classic opportunity in Ireland last time. The untimely combination of a brilliant Joseph O'Brien ride next to a misjudged one from Richard Hughes cost them dear but he has six lengths to make up Frankel from Newmarket and, as solid as he is, he's not good enough.

In all probability, neither is Wootton Bassett 14.0, although he ran well enough in France, better than post-race reviews suggest. The Fahey team made a premeditated move early from a difficult draw and those tactics, at the pace they employed, left him empty in the final run. He's better than that but he'll need to be and the suspicion remains that he's not a miler.

Unbeaten, largely untested, Frankel continues to push the boundaries of performance. I have the lingering feeling that the monster lurking within will destruct when he faces his ultimate test against the older horses but it won't be happening against this three-year-old bunch. Prepare to behold the beast of Frankelstein.