Royal Ascot

From Royal runners, to formidable teams and top-notch stallions bidding to break their Royal Ascot hoodoo, here are five things to watch out for on the opening day of the eagerly-anticipated meeting. It promises to be a week to savour.  Things Are Looking Rosy For Shapoor Mistry Bidding to continue a glorious summer for Oaks-winning owner-breeder Shapoor Mistry is Rosy Affair (Havana Grey), who lines up for the G1 King Charles III Stakes. The five-year-old mare, who won the Listed Cecil Frail Stakes over six furlongs at Haydock on her...

Wednesday's declarations have been made for Royal Ascot and fortunately there were no surprise withdrawals in the main events, with the French superstar Daryz (Sea The Stars) set to go head-to-head in the G1 Prince of Wales's Stakes with last year's winner Ombudsman (Night Of Thunder). Eight will line up for the 10-furlong feature, with Juddmonte's Kalpana (Study Of Man) the only notable name to not be put forward with the Hardwicke the preferred option. Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum's Tattersalls Gold Cup hero Almaqam (Lope De Vega), Ballydoyle's Minnie Hauk (Frankel) and Jeff Smith's...

French 2000 Guineas hero Rayif (Sea The Moon) will not take part in the G1 St James's Palace Stakes as he is not 100%, according to Aga Khan Studs' racing manager Nemone Routh. A winner of the G3 Prix Francois Boutin and third in the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere at two, the Francis-Henri Graffard trainee was a smart winner of the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains in May. He will not take on the English and Irish 2000 Guineas winners Bow Echo (Night Of Thunder) and Gstaad (Starspangledbanner), respectively, on...

G1 Prix Morny heroine Venetian Sun (Starman) is one of 25 horses remaining in the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot on Friday, June 19. She was a G3 Albany Stakes winner at two at Ascot. The Karl Burke trainee failed to stay in the G1 1000 Guineas, but made up for that effort with an impressive win in the G2 Sandy Lane Stakes over Division (Kingman) later in May. Sean Graham, racing manager to part-owner Tony Bloom, said of the filly, "Venetian Sun is in great form and came...

A total of 10 fillies, including Aidan O'Brien's English and Irish Guineas winners True Love (No Nay Never) and Precise (Starspangledbanner), have been entered in the G1 Coronation Stakes on Friday, June 19. The duo face G3 Fred Darling Stakes second Touleen (Lope De Vega) from the Owen Burrows yard. The filly finished sixth behind True Love in the G1 1000 Guineas at Newmarket. "She's well and seems good and it's all systems go for the Coronation," said Burrows. "We thought she had a good draw in the Guineas but...

Carrying a Royal Ascot entry, River In Paradise sold for 100,000gns to Narvick and bloodstock agent Shawn Dugan during the Tattersalls Online June Pop-Up Sale on Friday. Consigned by Robert Edwards's Uplands Stables, the daughter of Lope Y Fernandez holds an entry in the Listed Windsor Castle Stakes. She won a six-furlong fillies' maiden at Lingfield on June 4. Dugan said, "We are really excited. Marsha Naify is in England attending Royal Ascot and was alerted to this filly being in the Tattersalls Online sale. We all know how quickly...

Godfrey Wilson's homebred Run To Freedom sustained a fatal injury during trackwork on Thursday ahead of a start at Royal Ascot next week, according to a report in The Mirror. Trainer Henry Candy told Mirror Racing, "Run To Freedom fractured a pastern just doing a routine bit of work on the gallops. It was too bad to repair. He's been a great servant and a tremendous character." The eight-year-old intact son of Muhaarar won the G3 Abernant Stakes at Newmarket in April ahead of an intended start in the G1...

Following in a rich tradition of leading Australian sprinters at the royal meeting, Joliestar (Zoustar) and Overpass (Vancouver) undertook a dress rehearsal on the Ascot turf on Friday morning for their respective targets next week. The Bjorn Baker-trained Overpass heads to Tuesday's G1 King Charles III Stakes and Joliestar runs in the G1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes on Saturday for Chris Waller.  The latter's assistant Charlie Duckworth said, "Joliestar had a gallop this morning over 800 metres, 15 seconds per furlong for the first two furlongs before quickening up...

The Coolmore partners' Benvenuto Cellini (Frankel) could make a quick reappearance in Royal Ascot's G2 King Edward VII Stakes on Friday, June 19, according to trainer Aidan O'Brien. Favoured in the G1 Betfred Derby, the colt finished 10th before being declared a non-runner after getting a hind foot caught in the stalls. Fellow Ballydoyle runner Christmas Day (Camelot) would go on to win the Blue Riband. O'Brien told Kevin Blake in an attheraces.com stable tour, "There's a chance he could run in the King Edward. We have to see how...

Owner Tony O'Gorman is adamant that Britannia Stakes-bound Bobby McGee (Mayson) is a Group horse in the making and says only "strong money" would see him part with the Noel Meade-trained improver at the Goffs London Sale next week.  Bobby McGee has won his last three starts for Meade, most recently when accounting for a field of highly-touted runners over a mile on Royal Ascot Trials Day at Naas. That performance suggested that there can be even more to come for the now 93-rated Bobby McGee and O'Gorman says that...

Five horses have been supplemented to the Goffs London Sale, set for Monday, June 15, on the eve of Royal Ascot. the sale will be held in association with ULYSSIA and Fitzwilliam Sports at Kensington Palace Gardens. Santa Bravado (Iffraaj) (lot 18) has been added after posting a tally in a Navan 10-furlong affair on May 16. He carries an entry in the Golden Gate Stakes at Royal Ascot. Noble Horizon (Kingman) (lot 19) arrives after an eye-catching 5 1/2-length success over 10 furlongs at Leicester on June 8. Seven-time...

Betting firm Fitzdares say that St James's Palace Stakes hotpot Bow Echo (Night Of Thunder) is the best backed horse on day one at Royal Ascot - but trader Mark Cancea revealed that Venetian Sun, as short as 2-1 favourite for the Commonwealth Cup, is by far the most popular horse in the ante-post wagering for the meeting on the whole.  Punters seem to believe that 2,000 Guineas winner Bow Echo is the real deal, according to Cancea, who said Fitzdares have seen one-way traffic for George Boughey's stable star...