Australian raider Nature Strip (9-4) blitzed his rivals to run out a superb winner of the King’s Stand Stakes on the opening day of Royal Ascot 2022.
The Chris Waller-trained eight-year-old, who had won near £10million in prize-money throughout his career in the southern hemisphere, left his British and American rivals trailing in his wake. He flew to a four-and-a-half-length success over Twilight Calls (11-1), with 200-1 outsider Acklam Express was a further head lengths back in third and Mooniesta (16-1) a neck away in fourth.
It has been billed as a clash between the international raiders with American trainer Wesley Ward's Golden Pal, sent off the well-backed 7-4 favourite, up against the best from Down Under.
But while Golden Pal missed the break and tried to challenge midway through the contest before fading, Nature Strip travelled superbly just off the pace set. And when jockey James Macdonald asked him to go to the front at halfway, he quickly put daylight between himself and his rivals and the multiple Group One winner went on to land another in impressive style.
There was to be no Royal winner for The Queen in Platinum Jubilee year just yet as her King’s Lynn – a winner of the Group Two Temple Stakes at Haydock Park last month – could only manage a seventh-placed finish.
But it was the Aussies who were celebrating a first winner at the Royal meeting since another speedster Black Caviar won the now renamed Platinum Jubilee Stakes 10 years ago.
Waller, who trained superstar mare Winx, said: "It means a lot. We don't get the chance to race against the English, the Irish and even Americans today an awful lot.
"It's pretty special to bring a horse all this way and compete against the best in the world and to win the way he did.
"It was breathtaking, it was a good display and he's a very good horse. He has been for a long time.
"I guess he's in the twilight of his career, but he's learned to be a racehorse now as he was tricky early on. It's an honour to train him.
"Going international is very important to showcase our breed in Australia and of course he's one of the highest-rated horses in the world and it's stacked up.
"We'll see how he is after this and we'll make a decision later in the week on whether he runs in the Platinum Jubilee (on Saturday).
"This is definitely in the top five wins I've ever had."
James McDonald, riding his second Royal Ascot winner after Expert Eye's success in the 2018 Jersey Stakes, said: "That was incredible, the team have done a marvellous job.
"I'm so lucky to be on him and he's just an absolute freak of a horse. I think he's silenced a few critics with that performance because it was scintillating.
"I didn't know the riderless horse was riderless and I was thinking 'how has one come with him?'. He was just incredible.
"I saw the American horse charge through, at the two pole I was thinking 'are you going to come?', but he had no response. It was the riderless horse who gave me a fright."
Archie Watson's Bradsell (8-1), under Hollie Doyle, landed the Group Two Coventry Stakes in fine style.
The two-year-old Tasleet colt, who had won on his debut in a Novice Stakes at York last month, came through to score by a length-and-a-half from Persian Force (3-1) with Royal Scotsman (12-1), who had been the first to commit for home, a neck back in third. Blackbeard, sent off the well-backed 5-2 favourite to give Aidan O'Brien a record-extending 10th victory in the six-furlong contest, couldn't go with them when they kicked for home and was a further two lengths adrift in fourth.
But it was all about the winner, who will have his connections dreaming of a crack at next year's Classics following his Royal success. Bradsell is a 20-1 chance for the 2023 QIPCO 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket with Paddy Power and bet365.
Watson, who saw Dragon Symbol lose the Commonwealth Cup in the stewards' room 12 months ago, was delighted to land a second winner at the meeting following Soldier's Call's victory in the Windsor Castle Stakes in 2018.
Watson said: "I was probably a bit worried when it looked like the near side had won in front, he's had to do it the hard way but he's travelled into it supremely well.
"I said to Hollie to try to get a lead from those around you for as long as possible and that was as far as they took him into the race, he did hit the front two down and it's a long way from home, but he kept going and he's a supremely talented horse.
"It looked like a strong Coventry, I said to my fiance last night that what wins this in daylight will be a very good horse and it looks like he is.
"It's massive, it's our second Royal Ascot winner after Soldier's Call. We had a bad old day here last year when Dragon Symbol was demoted and we subsequently lost the horse, it means a lot."
He added: "He won't be spammed into each and every race. He's won the best Group Two, he'll go to a Phoenix or a Morny I would imagine – if he was to run before it'd be something like a Papin."
It was a third Royal Ascot winner for Doyle, making her the most successful female rider at the meeting, and she said: "It was an impressive performance. He got squeezed out of the gates which was frustrating.
"To begin with I thought I was drawn on the wrong side, but once I got into a handy position on the girths of them I knew the further I went the better.
"Two (furlongs) down I was pretty confident as they were all sitting ducks so I just thought 'let's get on with this' and he responded pretty well.
"Off the back performance you'd have to say the world is his oyster."
The Andrew Balding-trained Coltrane (14-1) won the Ascot Stakes under Callum Hutchinson.
The five-year-old gelding beat 3-1 favourite, the Willie Mullins-trained Bring On The Night by three-quarters-of-a-length.
