Frankel warmed up for what is likely to be the final race of his career with a work-out at Newmarket before racing on Saturday.

Sir Henry Cecil's superstar, officially the best racehorse in the world, is due to end his glittering career in the Champion Stakes at Ascot on October 20.

Connections decided to recreate race conditions by parading him in the paddock while jockey Tom Queally was wearing owner Khalid Abdullah's silks.

Frankel then galloped over one mile and a furlong (1800m) alongside stable companions Specific Gravity and Bullet Train.

Frankel's popularity has reached such heights there were barely any vantage points left in the paddock before the exercise.

Once under way, Bullet Train set off at a generous pace, not much slower than they would have gone in a real race.

Frankel won the gallop, going past the winning post to a generous round of applause from the big crowd.

"He's had a nice blow, but he wanted to because it's not D-Day," Cecil said.

"He didn't run in the Moulin because I didn't think it would achieve anything and this was a better idea."

Cecil said the final decision on whether the Champion Stakes would be Frankel's last start rested with his owner Prince Abdullah.

The trainer has been struggling with ill health in recent months and has been a rare visitor to racecourses this season.

"I am doing fine but I am getting tired and I need a good holiday," he said.