Royal Ascot

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...

SARATOGA SPRINGS - The best thing trainer George Weaver did at the 2025 OBS Spring Sale of 2-year-olds in-training was give a filly named Cy Fair (Not This Time) a second glance. On Thursday, opening day of the 40-day race meet at Saratoga, Weaver was sure glad he did. Cy Fair stamped herself as a keeper as she rolled to a 3 1/4-length win in a $100,000 Maiden race for 2-year-old fillies at 5 1/2 furlongs on the Mellon turf and earned a 'TDN Rising Star' in the process. Ridden...

A visit to Richard Kent at Mickley Stud is guaranteed to involve some lively conversation - and lots of it - spiced with opinion, tips on horsemanship, and often some scurrilous gossip. Tune in to our latest episode of the TDN Conversations podcast with the breeder of Royal Ascot winner Docklands.

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. Saturday's Observations features a half-brother to a recent Group 1-placed filly. 3.32 Deauville, Debutantes, €45,700, 2yo, c/g, 6fT RAYIF (IRE) (Sea The Moon {Ger}) is an intriguing newcomer for The Aga Khan Studs and Francis-Henri Graffard stable, being a half-brother to the recent G1 Commonwealth Cup third Rayevka. Stouter-bred...

The racing Gods looked down and smiled on us at Royal Ascot last week in delivering one of the greatest results imaginable when Joe Murphy and his son - also Joe - landed a breakthrough Group 1 triumph in the Coronation Stakes with Cercene.  It was a triumph for the grass roots operators and one that many thought was impossible in this day and age. The Murphys run a high-class but humble outfit on the outskirts of Fethard in County Tipperary. Success over the might of Francis Graffard and Aidan...

However poignant the cue, our collective reflections on the legacy of D. Wayne Lukas will discover much comfort not only in his vital embrace of every moment of a long, fulfilling life but also in the benedictions we can take forward with us. These range from the example he has set us all, in passionate advocacy of our sport, to the more specific conduits of horsemanship he opened in "coaching" Todd Pletcher and so many others. In measuring our gratitude, however, we additionally find ourselves contemplating a curiosity that invites...

It has been a strangely discombobulating week in some respects. It started in Westminster last Monday with the All-Party Parliamentary Group issuing its stark warning of the triple threat to the industry posed by potential betting duty harmonisation, affordability checks and an overdue Levy reform. This came on the back of an industry update in Newmarket the previous week at which the TBA chairman Philip Newton warned of a potential catastrophic collapse in the supply chain of young Thoroughbreds in Britain. Then, stepping through the golden gates of Royal Ascot,...

Gary Carroll has admitted to still being on a high after landing the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot aboard Joe Murphy's Cercene (Australia) and revealed that the breakthrough success at the highest level was made even sweeter given it came for the Fethard-based trainer who has been one of the rider's biggest supporters down through the years.  No trainer has supported Carroll quite like Murphy. The pair are operating at a 10 per cent strike-rate since they first teamed up together back in 2009. There have been 1,077 rides and...

Overall attendance across the five-day Royal Ascot meeting rose 4.8% compared to 2024 numbers. The total number of people attending was 286,541, while last year the number was 273,528. During the final day of the meeting, 71,073 people were on hand, up 2.6% on the 2024 total of 69,291. Felicity Barnard, CEO of Ascot Racecourse, said, "It has been a fantastic week with some brilliant sport to enjoy. I think we have been a window for our sport and I am absolutely thrilled. "We have welcomed more than 285,000 people...

The Coolmore partners were named the leading owners at Royal Ascot for the third consecutive year and sixth in total, as the five-day stand wrapped up on Saturday. Although they had five victories--the same as runner-up Wathnan Racing--they claimed their latest title by virtue of a countback of placed horses. For Sue Magnier, Derrick Smith, Michael Tabor and Westerberg, Gstaad (Starspangledbanner), True Love (No Nay Never), and Charles Darwin (No Nay Never) took the G2 Coventry Stakes, G2 Queen Mary Stakes, and G2 Norfolk Stakes, respectively. Garden Of Eden (Saxon...

Simon Sadler's TBT Racing was in the number one spot at Royal Ascot for the first time on Saturday as Noble Champion (Lope De Vega) dominated the G3 Jersey Stakes. Highly-regarded by Ed Walker, the half-brother to seven-furlong specialist Pogo had proved frustrating in three starts this term but not here as he came home alone under Kieran Shoemark. Always travelling easily tracking Godolphin's Spy Chief (Kingman) up the centre, the 25-1 shot swooped approaching the furlong pole and despite veering left from there recorded an emphatic 3 1/4-length success...

Saturday's G1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes lived up to all the billing, with Lazzat (Territories) denying the Japanese challenger Satono Reve (Lord Kanaloa) to provide Wathnan with a fifth Royal Ascot winner this week. Placed on the front end by James Doyle, the Jerome Reynier-trained G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest winner who was having only his second start over this six-furlong trip had too much power for that 2-1 favourite to prevail by half a length. There was a three-length gap back to Wathnan's other hope, Flora Of Bermuda...