Follow the build-up to the start of the opening day of Royal Ascot where Divine Comedy has been one of the best backed horses.
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Team tips
1338: You can never have enough tips can you?
The morning team on Sky Sports Racing have handed over to the afternoon squad but ended their segment with the team tips and here they are:
Josh Apiafi: Dolayli (230), Big Evs (345) and Israr (540)
Gina Bryce: Cowardofthecounty (305) and Fox Journey (615)
Jamie Lynch: Cowardofthecounty, Notable Speech (425) and Intinso (615)
Seb Sanders: Charyn (230), Regional (345) and Israr
Open market
1316: There may not have been much change at the top of the betting for the Queen Anne but the Wolferton has, I think, had three different favourites today.
John and Thady Gosden have a strong hand with Israr and Torito. We heard a little from the latter’s jockey earlier and he’s obviously keen on his mount – who happens to be my fancy – who was a very impressive winner of a traditionally strong Epsom handicap last season. He then finished third in the Hampton Court at this season but wasn’t seen again until Newmarket in May and I’d be hopeful that he’ll progress considerably from that run.
As a Group 2 winner Israr has nothing to prove at this level and comes here in top form having finished second to Passenger at Chester; he’s also run well at this meeting having finished third in the King George V Stakes in 2022. Three of his four wins have been in handicap company though and although he’s run some fine races in defeat, I’d be looking for something to improve past him.
The betting suggests Botanical could be that horse as Roger Varian seeks to saddle his third Wolferton winner since 2020. Impressive in a York handicap last month it wouldn’t be any surprise if he proved up to winning this but the price doesn’t excite me (around 3/1 favourite) as he still has, for example, 7lbs to find with Israr on official figures.
It hasn’t been a great race for fancied runners of late with only one (of the last 10) favourites winning and the last 3 winners returning at 16s, 20s and 14s. There appears to be lot of (relative) dead wood in this year’s renewal though and I struggled to find an outsider to hang my hat on with the nearest I came being Checkandchallenge.
He was beaten over 5 lengths into seventh last year but was staying on at the line; yet to hit form this campaign he has something to prove but then he is 40/1. I may yet be tempted. Much may depend on what happens before.
Ascot have an ‘official betting partner’ in Betfred and their Matt Hulmes had this to say: “A fascinating opening day of Royal Ascot and a vintage renewal of the St James’s Palace Stakes, in which Irish 2,000 Guineas winner Rosallion (11/4 from 7/2) has been backed to reverse the Newmarket form with Notable Speech.
“Botanical has been well supported in the Wolferton Stakes, into 7/2 from 5/1, while Big Evs is a solid 7/2 favourite for the King Charles III Stakes, with Rogue Lightning (9/1 from 12/1) also attracting support in the five-furlong sprint.
“Alsakib is a big mover in the lucky last, the Copper Horse Handicap, almost halving in price from 9/1 to 5/1 for Oisin Murphy and Andrew Balding.”
A pure champion
1307: Facteur Cheval is the apple of trainer Jerome Reynier’s eye and it sounds as though they are now beginning to reap rewards for their patience.
“As a young horse he was immature mentally which is why we kept him in France and as a four-year-old he was changing a lot,” Reynier told Sky Sports Racing.
“The owners like to travel their horses and the Sussex and Queen Elizabeth II were two nice trips. Dubai was the first time he had been on a plane and he has been adapting himself to his new environment very well in the morning. Now he is more mature mentally and physically and is able to compete at the highest level without losing any kind of ability.”
He proved more than his ability to travel and take things in his stride in Dubai with his success at Meydan also proving that Facteur Cheval was able to act under quicker conditions, something which should stand him in good stead today.
“We went to Dubai as an outsider, it was a very longshot and after a long period without winning he started his five-year-old campaign with a terrific win in the Dubai Cup and the next target was the Queen Anne. He’s in very good shape and we’re very hopeful of victory because he showed his ability to run on fast ground in Dubai and today the ground is going to be pretty quick.
“He knows the straight mile at Ascot, obviously finishing second in the Queen Elizabeth II behind Big Rock on very different ground. I think it is going to be a truly run race with a lot of pace. Facteur Cheval needs a lot of pace and I don’t think there will be any excuses for any of the runners and I’m really looking forward to seeing them competing.
“I think he’s just a pure champion and he goes anywhere, any kind of condition.”
There hasn’t been much movement in the market with Facteur Cheval 7/2, Charyn 4/1 and Big Rock 6/1.
Metropolitan elite
1252: The St James’s Palace Stakes is arguably the race of the week, featuring, as it does, the winners of three European Guineas.
The market is dominated by Newmarket winner Notable Speech and Curragh collector Rosallion but the ParisLongchamp performer Metropolitan is absolutely friendless in the market.
There are reasons to believe that Henry Longfellow will improve for that seasonal reappearance and Aidan O’Brien, naturally, has plenty of depth in his stable but his charge was only eighth behind Metropolitan in the Pouliches, beaten four lengths, and yet Henry Longfellow is 5/1 and Metropolitan is an extraordinary 40/1. His compatriot Darlinghurst, winner of a Group 3 last time (from the French Derby winner admittedly), is shorter in the market at 28/1. They may well come home in that sort of order but the prices do seem to be a little bit bonkers.
It promises to be a great spectacle with the Hannon team retaining plenty of faith – for good reason – with Rosallion who certainly has his backers believing that he can reverse Newmarket form with Notable Speech. I don’t have a strong view but both look to be exceptional colts and hopefully will provide further evidence of that this afternoon.
He gave me a really good feel
1228: It is jockey James Doyle’s turn to face the cameras and it is a big week for the newly retained Wathnan Racing rider.
“I’m really looking forward to Torito. I think he could, potentially, be one of my best rides of the week. I sat on him last week and he felt really good, his work was obviously just topping up work so it wasn’t strenuous but he gave me a really good feel. The draw is important, he’s drawn 2 and you’d rather 2 than 12 but we’ll probably need plenty of luck. I’m really excited to ride him.”
Rogue Lightning – I think we’ll find out where we’re at with him today. He ran in the Temple on sticky ground and we felt that just blunted his speed and he was a little ring-rusty on his first run back so we’re hoping that really sparked him up and he should be on his A-game today. The track and everything should suit, the ground will be perfect, it’s just whether he’s quite up to a race like this.
Catalyse – He’s a Starspangledbanner colt that won up at Hamilton. I haven’t ridden him but I did see him when I went up to Richard Fahey’s about 10 days ago and he looked really good, he’s got plenty of scope to him. It looked like he relaxed really well and just closed off in what sounded like it was an above average race; I think a few trainers were really happy with theirs so the fact that he ran out a ready winner clearly shows he’s got a good level of ability. Whether he’s good enough to win….I think it’s an impossible race because it’s very difficult to get a gauge on how good they are.
Poker Face – A real, likeable type who is owned by a great man in Ed Ware, a great character and a very sporting owner. We were disappointed with him in the Lockinge, his comeback run was good and then in the Lockinge he ran no race whatsoever so we had to just draw a line through it. He seems to be bouncing since and this track and everything should suit, if he can get back to how he ran at Sandown and last year he shouldn’t be the kind of price he is.
Tenerife Sunshine – He won last week at Goodwood, it seemed to suit him getting over a bit further. He’s a very relaxed character and makes you work pretty hard so I’ll be pushing and scrubbing from a long way out. The signs would suggest that he will stay this far, he’s a laidback character and he keeps galloping.
All aboard?
1216: Via the medium of X, Paddy Power have relayed their Royal Ascot market movers and they are as follows:
2.30 Maljoom 8/1 from 9s
3.45 Big Evs 11/4 from 10/3
4.25 Rosallion 11/4 from 10/3
5.05 Divine Comedy 7/1 from 8s
5.40 Botanical 7/2 from 9/2
6.15 A Piece Of Heaven 11/2 from 13/2
A SBK representative appeared on the telly earlier and I made a note of their movers which were:
3.45 Diligent Harry 16/1 from 25s
5.05 Divine Comedy (15/2 from 16s) and Nusret (8/1 from 16s)
5.40 Botanical 7/2 from 9/2
6.15 Alkasib 7/1 from 11s
With unusually good timing, a Boylesports representative has just been interviewed on Sky Sports Racing and this is a stripped back version of what he had to say:
“The Queen Anne is wide open. Charyn has been a little bit weak as is Facteur Cheval. There are a couple of springers at big prices and they are Maljoom and Docklands but the biggest mover of all is Hi Royal, 66s into 22s. The Coventry is also wide open and Cowardofthecounty and Camille Pissarro have been rock solid but this could go to a British horse if we believe the market. Yah Mo Be There has been really strong, he’s halved in price from 12/1. Symbol Of Honour is another springer for Godolphin (16/1 > 15/2) but maybe the most interesting mover of the day is in this race, it is Angelo Buonarotti for Amo Racing and he is Raphael Freire’s first runner for Amo; he was 25s into 14s and is the most interesting mover across the seven races.
“Zandabad has been really strong over the past couple of weeks and what an eyecatcher he was in the Chester Cup. There are a couple in against him we’ve seen money for with Divine Comedy and Nusret backed. My Layka has been friendless over the last 12 hours or so, she was 3/1 and is out to 6s.
“If we need a horse beaten in this one, it’s Divine Comedy.”
Wherever I lay my hat, that’s my home
1144: David Redvers is sporting a very traditional looking topper as one might suspect but he wears a number of figurative hats, including that of Racing Manager to Qatar Racing and the Sky Sports Racing team have caught up with him about hopes and expectations for the week ahead and Redvers seems quietly confident.
“Last year we had three seconds, we can do better than that, I think, this year,” he said.
Here’s what he had to say:
Tyson Fury – We’ve just leased him. Mark Enright, who is part of the team, came up with this plan that this was a nice opportunity and a relatively inexpensive way to have a winner on the first day. I’ve had a few messages and phone calls from people fancying him. We’ll see but he’s one of those horses who might represent a bit of value.
Mighty Eriu (Queen Mary) – She was very impressive the first day against Tunbridge Wells at the Curragh, she travelled best in the race over six. She’s another that could sneak in under the radar. Sheikh Fahad is really quite excited.
Evade (Commonwealth Cup) – This is a horse who showed a lot in France but the way French races were run with that crawl and sprint at the end didn’t suit him. He won the Surrey Stakes in tremendous fashion. There was a bit of a question as to whether we went for the Jersey or the Commonwealth, the Commonwealth has cut up and we’d rather win a Group 1.
Middle Earth (Hardwicke) – If you take the St Leger out of the equation he’s never run a bad race in his life. We were very careful of it being soft ground here and the weather forecast on this rare occasion has come right for us. He’ll love the quick ground, he’s in tremendous form. Oisin (Murphy) absolutely loves this horse and he reminds everyone of his father, Roaring Lion. He’s got an entry for the King George afterwards so we’re hoping this will prove him a Group 1 horse.
Jubilee Walk (Palace of Holyrood House) – James Ferguson has done a wonderful job with this horse, he’s got a huge amount of natural pace and there was a conversation about whether we should be going for the King Charles. You need a group horse in a handicap here to have any chance and that’s what we hope we’ve got.
When asked if his Tweenhills Stud had anything under their banner this week, he replied:
“Tonight at Beverley, we’ve got a first time out son of Kameko for Jamie Insole (trains in partnership with Dr Newland), a young trainer going places, and I was pleasantly surprised when I opened the paper to see he was a short-priced favourite.”
That isn’t giving a whole lot away but at least he deemed Houndsworth worthy of mention I suppose.
Big chance
1116: The atmosphere and preliminaries could be a concern for Asfoora who was described by Dwyer as ‘a bit of a wound-up filly’ but it sounds as though there will be no worries for Big Rock and his team.
It’s a big day for the brilliant winner of the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes as he has to prove himself on the quicker conditions and for a new trainer having switched yards over the winter. Big Rock didn’t get off to an auspicious start for Maurizio Guarnieri as he was beaten 15 lengths behind Audience in the Lockinge Stakes; a hugely disappointing performance and he now has questions to answer under his new jockey, the brilliant Christophe Soumillon.
The Sky Sports Racing preview programme is up and running and Big Rock’s team had this to say about their star:
“He travelled very well. He is calm. This morning we worked him a little bit and he was really serious, he seems to remember the place and he liked it. He knows that he is a star, he loves it when we are taking care of him. He is always calm and relaxed, he never seems to get stressed.”
And when asked about the ground, Guarnieri was hopeful that Big Rock would handle the conditions, concluding ‘I think he is a real champion and champions can do everything.’
There does seem to be some market confidence behind him as Big Rock is as short as 4/1 with one firm; Charyn and Facteur Cheval are both available at the same price.
Neither really sets the pulse racing with Charyn seeking a top level breakthrough and Facteur Cheval a solid but not standout top-flight performer. That may be good enough in this renewal of the Queen Anne Stakes. Charyn looks an improved model this season and the pair appeal as the likeliest winners, as the market suggests.
I want to be against Big Rock after that lacklustre run at Newbury and with concerns over the ground while it’s hard to think that Audience will be able to repeat his heroics with the opposition unlikely to leave him alone on the front-end. There’s a bit of money around for Maljoom which is encouraging and the case there is easier to make with his close fourth in the 2022 St James’s Palace Stakes just three starts ago.
This does, though, have the look of a race where one or two big priced runners could hit the frame – or better – and Hi Royal is on my list in the hope that the blinkers help him capture the decent form he showed in the first half of last season. The other I want onside is Witch Hunter; the winner of the Buckingham Palace Stakes lacks the class of some of these but the track and conditions suit and he could pick up the pieces off a strong pace. He appeals as the type to run his race and I don’t think it’s a stretch to see him hitting the frame.
International mare of mystery
1055: Ascot have worked hard at attracting international runners to the Royal meeting and their presence certainly adds to the excitement and their number have produced some unforgettable moments with Black Caviar’s Diamond Jubilee Stakes victory prominent among them.
Attempting to follow in her steps is Asfoora and the quickening conditions will be music to the ears of her connections; Henry Dwyer had this to say about her last week.
“All our good sprints are six furlongs and she just doesn’t get that. She is a dyed in the wool five-furlong horse. There is a good series of races over here.
“We almost came over to get away from Imperatriz more than anything, but she has been retired so we probably pulled the wrong rein there. We are now lacking depth at home, but people I spoke to over here said there probably isn’t heaps of depth in the five-furlong horses this year and it may be the right time to come over.
“If you take Big Evs out of the equation – he is clearly the one to beat – the rest of the horses look evenly matched. There is no stand-out and they are all pretty evenly matched. It will be the horse which enjoys Ascot and gets the right run.
“We knew we would probably need the run at Haydock a little bit. It was a combination of factors. It was too wet – she handles a wet track but 1,000m becomes more like a 1,100m or 1,200m race. She wasn’t ready for that. The circumstances on the day made it hard for her. She was beaten two and a half lengths and I’d be staggered if she couldn’t make up that improvement on the horses in that race. I think there is a bit to come.”
There is, though, a caveat about the stiff finish at Ascot which connections believe may not show Asfoora in her best light.
“I think Ascot will be a challenge for her but she will run really well,” Dwyer continued.
“A stiff five furlongs probably doesn’t suit her, whereas when we go to Goodwood and York, down the hill and on the flat, that is when she will really come into her own. I would love to see her run in the top three or four at Ascot. If she can do that, she will be really well placed for her next two runs.”
Asfoora is on the drift to a general 8/1 with Big Evs, taking on his elders for the first time since the Nunthorpe, popular at the top of the market at 7/2. Regional is 5/1 and it’s 9s bar those three.
It’s for charity mate!
1036: As Smashie and Nicey would say back in the day.
It isn’t all for charity for Ryan Moore but the Betfair Ambassador is also undertaking ambassadorial duties for Royal Ascot this week. Moore has been the leading jockey at Royal Ascot 10 times including last year when he partnered six winners and in 2022 where he had seven winners.
He is a best of 4/7 to repeat the feat which could be good news for Retraining of Racehorses, British horse racing’s official charity for the welfare of horses who have retired from racing, as Ascot will donate £5,000 for every Moore winner.
As part of his duties, Moore talked about some of his rides – and you can, of course, read his thoughts via the link above and through the week on these pages – highlighting Kyprios and Opera Singer as two of the rides that he was most looking forward to while he had this to say about the juvenile team:
“On the first day we have a lovely Wootton Bassett horse, Camille Pissarro, he was beaten on his last start, but we expect him to come on. We also have Whistlejacket in the Norfolk, who is Little Big Bear’s brother, he’s an exciting colt. He won a Listed race at the Curragh the last time, and we expect him to be very competitive.
“I’m also looking forward to riding Fairy Godmother in the Albany. She won a trial at Naas a couple of weeks ago, and we expect the Albany to suit her and we have a lovely Churchill filly, Heavens Gate, who won at the Curragh and we are looking forward to a big run from her in the Queen Mary.”
Rain? What rain?
1020: The ‘sporting gods’ – which one member of the SL team is fond of referencing – have smiled on Royal Ascot, or at least the fast ground lovers, with less rain than forecast hitting the track over the weekend and the weather also looks set fair today which should make clerk of the course Chris Stickels’ job that little bit easier.
The summer may finally have arrived – with something of a whimper admittedly – but there should be no need for sheltering under umbrellas and dodging showers for the racegoers. That has all meant that the ground has quickened since declaration time – and the straight course is famously quick draining these days – with the official description now good to firm.
Officials were even moved to water on Monday, adding 5mm to the straight and round courses, leaving the ground at good last night but a bright and breezy start means it’s now that little bit faster.
For those with a keen interest in GoingStick readings and rail movements, the details are as follows:
GoingStick readings at 8am:
Stands’ side: 8.0
Centre: 7.9
Far side: 8.1
Round: 7.6
Stalls:
Straight Course: centre
Round Course: inside
Rail movements:
The rail on the Round Course will be positioned approximately four yards out from approximately nine furlongs out to the home straight. This will remain in place until after racing on Wednesday.
This adds the following to today’s races:
16:25 +7 yards (approximately)
17:05 +14 yards (approximately)
17:40 +14 yards (approximately)
18:15 +14 yards (approximately)
Weather:
Dry for the past 24 hours to 6.30am. 7.8mm rain recorded over the past 7 days. The forecast is for fine and dry weather through Tuesday and Wednesday, and possibly fine and dry all week. There is the threat of some thundery showers as the temperature builds from Thursday.
Good morning
1000: Are you excited yet? Butterflies in the stomach and that tingling sensation?
The start of Royal Ascot is almost upon us and there are few meetings / festivals that get off to a better start with three Group 1 races staged on the opening day. There’s no dipping the toe into the water in Berkshire, it’s a full on divebomb straight into the depths of the Queen Anne Stakes.
It may not be the classiest renewal of the mile contest but it’s certainly an intriguing one with no stand out performer but one runner that is out is Royal Scotsman who has bruised his foot. Having adopted front-running tactics at Epsom, I wonder if that will help surprise Lockinge winner Audience’s claims as it increases his possibility of gaining an uncontested lead.
Also absent today is Andesite who has injured himself in a box. Andesite was around 6/1 second favourite for the Coventry Stakes so it’s obviously a great shame to be losing one of the market leaders for the juvenile highlight but they are still betting 11/2 the field with Graeme North’s timefigure fancy Cowardofthecounty topping the market from Camille Pisarro.
More Royal Ascot previews, tips & features
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