Triple Time landed a shock 33-1 win in the opener to Royal Ascot 2023, the Queen Anne Stakes, and denied Frankie Dettori a winner on his final week at the meeting.
The Charlie Appleby-trained Modern Games, under jockey and Liverpool FC fan William Buick, was sent off the 7-4 favourite on the back of his success in the Al-Shaqab Lockinge Stakes success at Newbury last month, while Dettori's mount, the John and Thady Gosden-trained Inspiral, was a well-backed 11-4 second favourite. But Kevin Ryan's outsider Triple Time, under Neil Callan, dominated the Group One mile opener, leading almost from start to finish before holding on by a neck from the last year's impressive Coronation Stakes heroine Inspiral and Dettori. Light Infantry (14-1) was a further two-and-a-quarter lengths back in third with Modern Games – who had sat just off the pace in fourth – finishing a further three-quarters-of-a-length adrift in the same position he held throughout. Triple Time – who had won three times at Haydock Park in 2022 including in the Group Three Superior Mile last September – was landing a first success at the top level and provided his North Yorkshire-based trainer with an ninth Royal Ascot winner.
On the Frankel colt's victory, Ryan said: "“He was in great shape coming into the race. We’ve always had great faith in the horse; Sheikh Mohammed Obaid has been very patient. Unfortunately he got a bit of stomach cramp just before the Lockinge and we had to take him out, and he’s only had one ordinary run; that was in France (October 1 2022) on deep ground, and apart from that and when he came back from his little injury at Haydock when he was only 80% fit – we had to run him because we were running out of time – now hopefully we will have a full season with him now, and he’s got his Group One, which is great. I’m delighted for all my team, and my family. Omar, who looks after him, has done a magnificent job with him, and Sheikh Mohammed Obaid has been a big, big supporter of ours. He’s so patient, and I’m delighted to have a big one for him, especially here.
