Mark Johnston has come out fighting on the back of Attraction's eclipse at Newmarket on Tuesday.

The previously unbeaten filly went under by two and a half lengths to Soviet Song in the Group One UAE Equestrian And Racing Federation Falmouth Stakes, having gone off the 4-5 favourite.

But the Middleham trainer has not lost the slightest faith in the Duke Of Roxburghe's dual Classic heroine.

''The Duke said at the beginning of the year if we were asked to settle for second in the Falmouth and nothing else we would have said that would be great,'' he said.

''But she has finished second in that and won three Group Ones. She is still the best horse I have ever trained and if it were any other sport we would say 'let's build up to a rematch'.''

Attraction, who may stay in training as a four-year-old, now appears set for a well-deserved rest.

''I think we have decided that she will miss the Prix d'Astarte in three weeks' time. She has had three Group Ones at three-week intervals and that is an awful lot for any horse,'' Johnston said.

''She will have a little break and the next option is the Prix Jacques le Marois (at Deauville on August 15). The owner was thinking of maybe a longer break, but the problem is that as we go into September we are looking at softer ground and other factors.

''She will be taking on the colts, but we have to do these things and now maybe the pressure is off in that we are not trying to defend her unbeaten record and are just trying to win races.''

Reflecting on Tuesday, he added: ''We were of course very disappointed to be beaten, but I don't want too much to be made of it, I kept saying unbeaten runs come to an end.

''It is unfair to take too much credit away from the winner, who ran a great race. We have just got to hope that Attraction wasn't at her best and we would be happy to have another go - you just have to judge the form on the day and take it on the chin.

''I assess the race at the time, not with the benefit of hindsight and I said midway through the race 'they are not going fast enough'.

''People said to me after the race the time was very fast, but I think now that those who have been looking at sectional times will feel I was absolutely right, the first half of the race was slow and they have run a blinder in the second half of the race to make up for it.

''We could see at halfway that nothing was under pressure and that is not typical of Attraction. In her last three races she has had many of the field under pressure by halfway and all of the field under pressure by two out. Yesterday it wasn't only the winner that was hanging in there easily.

''That was not typical of Attraction for whatever reason, whether it was Kevin (Darley) taking her back or whether the filly was not flowing as she would like in the first half of a race.

''It could be either, the strange thing was that she stumbled out of the stalls a bit and got hampered and then she took off. She was going a bit fast so he took her back, and it is a very fine line - if it was jockeyship rather than horse it was not deliberate.''