Such was his superiority in the G1 Prix d'Ispahan at Chantilly May 24, Eishindo Co Ltd's A Shin Hikari (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) has drawn just five opponents in Wednesday's G1 Prince of Wales's S. at Royal Ascot and only two who can realistically lay claim to being fully-fledged members of the highest order in European turf racing. One of those is Frank Gillespie's The Grey Gatsby (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}), who looks likely to dodge the new star of the Far East with further rain causing relentless havoc on the opening day. His trainer Kevin Ryan said on Tuesday, “He's still in the race, so we'll see how the ground is riding and make a decision tomorrow. I'm not optimistic the ground is going to suit him. Like a lot of horses running here this week, he'd prefer better ground.”
Of those who experienced A Shin Hikari's backdraft as he powered around the famous chateau, only Paul and Clare Rooney's My Dream Boat (Ire) (Lord Shanakill) dares to re-oppose, but that otherwise progressive G3 Prix Perth and G3 Gordon Richards S. winner has over 14 lengths to make up on the G1 Hong Kong Cup hero after he trailed in fifth in that nine-furlong feature. It was some European debut from the grey, who also showed he was more than able to handle heavy ground conditions. Ease in the surface again has already put paid to the prospect of a battle with possibly his biggest potential danger in Time Test (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), so a first Japanese winner at the Royal meeting seems almost assured. Beaten a short head by Free Eagle (Ire) (High Chaparral {Ire}) when denied a clear run in this 12 months ago, The Grey Gatsby was due to bid to make up for a frustrating last campaign which proved largely an anti-climax following his 3-year-old tally. Now the weather has interfered with his plans and Ryan added, “We could wait for the Eclipse, but he's been ready to run for a while. I'll have to discuss with Frank [Gillespie] whether we take a chance and get a run into him. If you keep getting these horses ready for races and then don't run, they get very fresh, so we'll see.”
Connections' fears are fully grounded, with the 2014 G1 Prix du Jockey Club and G1 Irish Champion S. hero The Grey Gatsby thriving on a sound surface when also runner-up to Golden Horn (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}) in Sandown's G1 Eclipse S. over this trip in July but floundering when it was on the easy side when third in the G1 Juddmonte International at York in August and when sixth attempting to hold on to his Irish Champion crown in September.
One of two fillies who undid Golden Horn last season, the GI Breeders' Cup Turf winner Found (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), has twice been upstaged by members of that sex this summer and needs to find something extra after comprehensive defeats by Fascinating Rock (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) in The Curragh's G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup over 10 1/2 furlongs May 22 and by Postponed (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) in the June 4 G1 Coronation Cup at Epsom. “She ran well enough in the Coronation Cup at Epsom, as they just cantered round for the first six furlongs, which made it hard work,” Jockey Ryan Moore said. Godolphin's Tryster (Ire) (Shamardal) comes into this off the back of a win in the nine-furlong G1 Jebel Hatta and third in the G1 Dubai Turf over the same trip at Meydan in March and it is guesswork as to how he will handle this surface. Godolphin's racing manager John Ferguson said, “Tryster, as he showed in Dubai, is a horse with some serious acceleration. He is in great form and he showed in Dubai that he handles a flat track well and Ascot is obviously very different. It is a huge ask to beat the Japanese horse.”
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