Ascot

Aidan O'Brien will rely on the G1 Coronation Cup hero Jan Brueghel (Galileo) in Saturday's G1 King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot after opting to withdraw the Derby and Irish Derby hero Lambourn (Australia) and the Pretty Polly winner Whirl (Wootton Bassett). Just five remain, with Ballydoyle's pacemaker Continuous (Heart's Cry) there to set up the rematch between his stablemate and The Aga Khan Studs Epsom runner-up Calandagan (Gleneagles), who has since captured the G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud. Juddmonte's G1 British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes heroine Kalpana...

The 2025 Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup will feature jockeys from 10 different countries, with Katie Davis, Delphine Santiago and Joanna Mason completing the line up for the team event which takes place at Ascot on Saturday, August 9. French-born Santiago joins captain Per-Anders Graberg (Sweden) and Dario Di Tocco (Italy) in team Europe, while Mason completes the team from Great Britain and Ireland which also features captain Hollie Doyle and Robbie Dolan. Meanwhile, Davis, who was born in Idaho in the USA, will compete in the Shergar Cup for...

French ace Calandagan (Gleneagles), G1 Coronation Cup winner Jan Brueghel (Galileo), globetrotter Rebel's Romance (Dubawi) and star filly Kalpana (Study Of Man) headline the confirmations for Saturday's G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot. Worth a record £1.5m in 2025, the King George is Britain's richest all-aged contest and the most valuable race ever run at Ascot. Francis-Henri Graffard is chasing back-to-back victories following Goliath's surprise win in 2024. This year the trainer will be represented by Calandagan, who gained a deserved Group 1 success in the...

Ascot Racecourse is set to return record prize-money of £17.75 million to the sport in 2025, having announced its financial results for the 12 months ended December 31, 2024. Turnover for that period rose by 2% to £113.1 million, with a pre-tax profit of £8.4 million - up from £5.9 million in 2023. The 2024 business summary highlighted several other points of interest: Gross profit was broadly static, reflecting the general inflationary economic conditions. whilst this also included an increase of £526k in the executive contribution towards prize-money. Profit before...

If Tuesday's Group 1 bonanza was akin to absorbing a Mike Tyson combination, such was the ferocity of the action, Royal Ascot's day-two fixture takes a relatively measured approach to its Group 1 crescendo. The £1-million highlight of Wednesday's fayre is the G1 Prince Of Wales's Stakes in which a star-studded older brigade will race eight yards shy of a full 10 furlongs on the round course. The Breeders' Cup "Win And You're In" race is amply supported by the undercard, which opens with a trio of Group 2 events....

John Stewart's Resolute Racing farm in central Kentucky, located on the grounds of the former Shadayid Stud, will be expanded to include a new training facility, Stewart said on Nick Luck's Live From Royal Ascot podcast Tuesday. "It's our second year [on the farm]," said Stewart. "Last year we bred 31 mares, this year we bred over 50. We've got some fantastic diversity on the farm and we're really excited about that. We've got out first yearlings that were bred on the farm coming up so next year they'll be...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Friday's Observations features a daughter of multiple Group 1 winner Wild Illusion (Dubawi). 2.55 Ascot, Mdn, £15,000, 3yo, f, 9f212yT SPIRITED STYLE (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) is one of two newcomers for Godolphin in this fascinating affair and the Charlie Appleby-trained daughter of Dubawi's triple Group 1 heroine...

Totally unexposed entering Wednesday's Listed Paradise Stakes, Marcstown's Sardinian Warrior (Ire) (Saxon Warrior {Jpn}) made his first start on turf a successful one in Ascot's Queen Anne Stakes Trial. Stalking the strong early pace under Kieran Shoemark, the John and Thady Gosden-trained son of the G1 Phoenix Stakes and G1 Matron Stakes winner La Collina (Ire) (Strategic Prince {GB}) moved to the front inside the final two furlongs and held off Docklands (GB) (Massaat {Ire}) to score by half a length. "He's a really talented horse and this was his...

Charlie Appleby has got off to a flyer with his two-year-olds and Wednesday's Royal Ascot Two-Year-Old Trial EBF Conditions Stakes saw one who could be for the future as well as now. A half-brother to the G1 Commonwealth Cup and G2 Norfolk Stakes winner Perfect Power (Ire) (Ardad {Ire}) who cost 1million gns at Tattersalls October Book 1, Godolphin's Wise Approach (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) had a lot to live up to on this debut but as the 16-5 joint-favourite was expected to put up a bold show. Tracking the leaders...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Wednesday's Observations features a Mehmas (Ire) half-brother to multiple Group 1 winner Perfect Power (Ire). 1.10 Ascot, Cond, £20,000, 2yo, 5fT WISE APPROACH (IRE) (Mehmas {Ire}) is an intriguing newcomer in this well-contested Royal Ascot Two-Year-Old Trial EBF Conditions Stakes, being Godolphin's 1million gns Tattersalls October Book 1 purchase...

The corporate hospitality company Eventmasters, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this year, will sponsor Royal Ascot Trials Day on April 30. Eventmasters will put its name to four races on the card worth a total £315,000 in prize-money as well as having headline sponsorship for the meeting. Eventmasters has worked with Ascot Racecourse throughout its 40 years of trading with Royal Ascot being a key event in the calendar with upwards of 3,500 guests due to be in attendance. The company has also sponsored at Doncaster, Kempton, Warwick, Windsor, Wolverhampton...

ASCOT, UK -- Six months ago David Howden was in the winner's enclosure celebrating success at Royal Ascot with his G2 Duke of Cambridge Stakes winner Running Lion (GB) (Roaring Lion). On Friday the owner-breeder was back at the racecourse to espouse his passion for sport horses, and more specifically how racehorses can be retrained for other disciplines. Howden's principal interest in horses came through eventing. He hosts Cornbury Horse Trials at his Oxfordshire home every September and his daughter Jemima is one of the rising stars of the young...