There’s nothing like Royal Ascot and it’s so exciting to be on the eve of such a big meeting. It’s every trainer’s dream to have runners over the five days and while we’ve not got a huge team going there this year, we’re looking forward to punching above our weight with our contenders.
Tuesday
Docklands (14:30 Queen Anne Stakes)
By now, everyone knows what a star Docklands has been and continues to be for our yard. He doesn’t know how to run a bad race and really put us on the map when he landed the Britannia at the Royal Meeting back in 2023. He had a really fruitful campaign in 2024 despite not winning and did the whole team proud with his second in the Queen Anne and admirable international campaign in Australia and Hong Kong.
He came back from his travels in really good form, and we’ve been building him up gradually to have another crack at the Queen Anne again. His second in the Paradise Stakes in April was encouraging and whilst he was beaten favourite that day, he probably bumped into a progressive Gosden horse and there was plenty of encouragement to be taken.
We thought the Diomed looked like a winnable Group Three on Derby Day but unfortunately, as has been the case with him on a few occasions, and through no fault of his own I should add, he was an unlucky loser. Richard Kingscote just got caught in a pocket when the eventual winner had a dream run past him, and despite flying at the finish he couldn’t get there. We were naturally disappointed not to get his head in front, but we still took solace from the run as it showed what great form he’s in.
He’s come out of Epsom really well and you’d barely know he’s had a race. We’re under no illusions that the Queen Anne is a very deep race this year, and possibly deeper than last year’s renewal. Rosallion tops the betting and looks like he’ll come on from the Lockinge, and the likes of Lead Artist, Dancing Gemini and Notable Speech all must be respected.
His owners had been lining up an Australian jockey to ride him from a while out and have booked Mark Zahra for Tuesday. It’s fantastic to have Mark on board as he’s one of the best in the world, especially so given the fact that he’s ridden him before and knows him a bit. It’s a shame for Richard but he was aware of the plans before Epsom and knew it was likely that an Aussie jockey would take the ride for Ascot.
According to the betting, we’re one of the outsiders, but we’re confident he’ll run a big race and are delighted to have a runner in one of the biggest races of the year. If we managed to win it’d be the biggest win of my career by a considerable way, and we’re thrilled to have a contender with a chance.
Divine Comedy (17:00 Ascot Stakes)
We declared Divine Comedy for the Ascot Stakes, but we’ll be on a close weather watch with her. She came out of the Chester Cup really well, albeit I ran her back a tad quickly after her fine run in the Sagaro Stakes. She’s run up to form this year and just hasn’t had her conditions, and I’d say she’d need the rain to come if she were to run on the Tuesday. She was obviously second in the race last year on quick ground, but I thought she was quite well-handicapped then and I wouldn’t be that keen on chancing her on quicker ground this time around.
Thursday
La Botte (17:00 Britannia Stakes)
La Botte has looked like a really promising colt for us for a while and was a taking winner of a seven-furlong maiden at Newcastle back in late March. We then took him to the King Charles III Stakes at Newmarket on Guineas weekend and he ran a blinder then, not finishing too far behind Cosmic Year. He then went on to run a cracking second behind Field Of Gold in the Irish 2000 Guineas, so that form-line has a strong look to it.
We’ve been pleased with our guy since Newmarket as he’s trained super and not missed a day. He has a rating of 99 which is probably high enough for him given he’s only ran three times, but we’re hoping he can put in a bold effort in the Britannia and the stiff, straight mile at Ascot should suit him.
We won the race back in 2023 with Docklands, and although La Botte is rated five pounds higher than him coming into this, we hope he can show what we think of him with a big run. It won’t be easy, as these Ascot handicaps are full of promising horses who’ve yet to show their full ability, so hopefully, with a bit of luck, he can do us proud.
Friday
Time For Sandals (15:05 Commonwealth Cup)
Time For Sandals is a lovely filly who’s done well on her two starts this season. She was a fine third on her seasonal bow in the Fred Darling at Newbury and that probably answered our questions about whether she’d be campaigned as a Guineas filly or not, as she didn’t seem to quite see out the seven furlongs. We then took her to Chantilly for a six-furlong Group Three, and she was only narrowly defeated. She ran a cracker that day and while it’s probably a stretch to say she was unlucky, we took a look of positives from the run with a view to the future.
That race in France has been an interesting form-guide for the Commonwealth Cup in recent years and we’re very interested to see how she matches up with the best three-year-old sprinters in Europe. You’ve got the Guineas third Shadow Of Light dropping back from the mile, and he’s got to be hugely respected as a two-time Group One winner last year. There are plenty of others in there who look like they may be hard to beat, but we feel like she’s got every chance and hope she can be competitive.
All the best,
Harry