That's all for day one ...
Well, the Royal Ascot race planners come in for plenty of stick (rightly) for starting the meeting with three Group One races so quickly on day one but it made for compelling viewing this afternoon. Nature Strip bolted home in the King’s Stand sprint and Coroebus landed the odds, if a little fortunately, in the St James’s Palace Stakes but it was Baaeed in the opener who still stole the show.
The winner came into the meeting with everything to lose given the comparisons made with Frankel after his success in the Lockinge Stakes at Newbury, a race that horse won in such imperious style as a four-year-old. Baaeed didn’t win in the style of Frankel this afternoon (it could take another century before we see the equivalent of that hose) but those who crabbed the horse for a two-length defeat of Real World might be mistaken in being a little underwhelmed. The runner-up is a genuine Group One horse and I would back Baaeed against the three-year-old Coroebus any day of the week if they clash in the Sussex Stakes.
When Baaeed steps up to ten furlongs in the Juddmonte Stakes at York in August that is a race to travel some way to see. Bring it on ... and tomorrow when we get to see the impressive Bay Bridge again in the St James’s Palace Stakes. Hope you enjoyed the day and see you again on Wednesday.
Copper Horse Handicap Stakes (6.10pm) result
1 Get Shirty (D Tudhope) 16-1
2 Cleveland (R L Moore) 2-1 Fav
3 Okita Soushi (D P McDonogh) 11-2
4 Alright Sunshine (Billy Garritty) 40-1
16 ran
Non Runner: 7
Copper Horse Handicap Stakes (6.10pm)
And they’re off ... Danehill Kodiac has an early lead with Quenelle D’Or close up ... Get Shirty is up there ... Cleveland is up there on the home turn ... Stowell bursting through but Get Shirty quickens up the best to give jockey Danny Tudhope his second winner of the day.
Updated
Copper Horse Handicap Stakes (6.10pm) betting
- Cleveland – 2/1
- Juan De Montalban – 4/1
- Stowell – 13/2
- Okita Soushi – 7/1
- Bandinelli – 16/1
- Get Shirty – 16/1
- Platinumcard – 22/1
- Not So Sleepy – 28/1
- BAR – 33/1
- Full Oddschecker betting here
Updated
Copper Horse Handicap Stakes (6.10pm) preview
One of the recent additions to the programme during the Coronavirus pandemic, and a dangling carrot for punters looking to dig themselves out of a hole in the form of Cleveland, Aidan O’Brien’s Chester Cup winner. That was only the fifth start of Cleveland’s career and while today’s race is half a mile shorter, he is bred to win Classics and should not be too inconvenienced. That said, however, this is a very tightly-knit handicap and there are plenty of opponents with similar profiles that could find more improvement.
Stowell, whose trainer, John Gosden, took this race last year with 33-1 shot Amtiyaz, is certainly one of those, along with Okita Soushi, from the Joseph O’Brien stable in Ireland, but the one to back could prove to be JUAN DE MONTALBAN, who was a ready winner of a handicap over 12 furlongs here in May. He should be suited by the step up in trip and Kevin Philipart de Foy, his trainer, is one of the hottest young handlers around, with a 21% strike rate and a level stakes profit so far this season.
Wolferton Listed Stakes (5.35pm) result
1 Dubai Future (D Tudhope) 20-1
2 Cadillac (S Foley) 11-2 Fav
3 Harrovian (L Dettori) 14-1
15 ran
Also: 17-2 Regal Reality 4th
Non Runner: 3
Updated
Wolferton Listed Stakes (5.35pm)
And they’re off ... Moving Time was slowly away and Tasman Bay leads in the early stages ... they’ve gone off too fast with Palavecino chasing up the leader and the pair well clear ... Star Safari has pulled up ... Aristia challenges but Dubai Future powers into the lead and kicks clear for a very convincing win.
A race run like a favourite for Dubai Future and Daniel Tudhope in Wolferton Stakes victory! 🏆#ITVRacing | #RoyalAscot pic.twitter.com/XV9qe0mOJm
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) June 14, 2022
Updated
Wolferton Listed Stakes (5.35pm) betting
- Cadilliac – 13/2
- Juan Elcano – 7/1
- Foxes Tails – 17/2
- Regal Reality – 17/2
- Star Safari – 10/1
- West End Charmer – 11/1
- Tasman Bay – 12/1
- New Mandate – 16/1
- Harrovian – 16/1
- Full betting on Oddschecker
Wolferton Listed Stakes (5.35pm) preview
A Listed contest which is betting more like a handicap, with last year’s winner, Juan Elcano, vying for favouritism with CADILLAC and Regal Reality at around 7-1. With Majestic Dawn, Foxes Tales – a handicap winner at the meeting last year – and Star Safari all having obvious cases to be made in their favour, this is probably the most competitive event on today’s card so proceed with caution, but Cadillac’s winning form at Leopardstown last time is as strong as anything on offer, he posted a strong time in the process and Jessica Harrington’s runners overseas always deserve the greatest respect.
Cleveland surely going to be even more popular now for the 6.10pm race having beaten Coltrane in the Chester Cup last time out.
Ascot Stakes Handicap (5.00pm) result
1 Coltrane (Callum Hutchinson) 14-1
2 Bring On The Night (R L Moore) 3-1 Fav
3 Arcadian Sunrise (Harry Davies) 9-2
19 ran
Also: 50-1 Going Gone 4th
Non Runner: 9
Updated
Ascot Stakes Handicap (5.00pm)
And they’re off ... Golden Flame and Scaramanga are the early leaders of this marathon two-and-a-half-mile contest ... Just Hubert has taken up the running as they go past the finishing line for the first time ... Surrey Gold is towards the back ... Just Hubert has run wide and lost the lead Marshall Plan is now just behind Golden Flame up front ... Coltrane is near the leaders ... Surrey Gold being ridden along ... Protected Guest and Rock Eagle make progress ... Rock Eagle takes the lead ... Bring On The Night challenges but Coltrane is close and Coltrane wins to deny the Bring On The Night gamble.
Some ride from Callum Hutchinson! He holds off Ryan Moore and Bring On The Night, as Coltrane lands the Ascot Stakes! #RoyalAscot @AndrewBalding2 pic.twitter.com/X9lLhSXUle
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 14, 2022
Updated
William Haggas was exemplary over the terrible trip suffered by his Maljoom in the St James’s Palace Stakes.
William Haggas is such a gentleman. Empathetic, thoughtful and humane words of support for his jockey. 'He's a young man and he's devastated.'
— Tania Kindersley (@taniakindersley) June 14, 2022
Updated
Note to all presenters: Chris Hughes (he of Love Island fame) read out a reader’s letter on ITV Racing earlier, ticking him off for the pronunciation of My Prospero. It is named after the character in Shakespeare’s The Tempest. Please get it right!
Updated
Ascot Stakes Handicap (5.00pm) betting
- Bring On the Night - 7/2
- Arcadian Sunrise - 11/2
- Pied Piper - 8/1
- Marshall Plan - 10/1
- Surrey Gold - 12/1
- Coltrane - 14/1
- Reshoun - 16/1
- Rock Eagle - 16/1
- Proschema - 16/1
- Make My Day - 18/1
- Golden Flame - 20/1
- BAR - 28/1
- Full Oddschecker betting
Updated
Ascot Stakes Handicap (5.00pm) preview
The top of the betting for this two-and-a-half mile handicap reads like the list for a Grade One at Cheltenham in March, with Willie Mullins’s Bring On The Night – who was a distant fourth behind Constitution Hill in the Supreme Novice Hurdle three months ago – heading the market on 7-2 with Pied Piper (Gordon Elliott) and Proschema (Dan Skelton) also among the main contenders. Mullins had several entries but relies on Bring On The Night, which many will see as a tip in itself, in his hunt for a fifth win in this race in 11 runnings.
Reshoun, successful last year at 66-1, will be a lot shorter this time around, and SURREY GOLD could also be worth a second look. Hughie Morrison’s four-year-old will be taking a big step up in trip having finished a close second on his seasonal debut over 14 furlongs, but he is bred to get a lot further than that, has scope for improvement with just 10 runs in the book and his trainer has gone close with a couple of similar types in the past.
Updated
St James's Palace Stakes (4.20pm) result
1 Coroebus (W Buick) 10-11 Fav
2 Lusail (P J Dobbs) 28-1
3 My Prospero (Tom Marquand) 4-1
11 ran
Also: 8-1 Maljoom 4th
Non Runners: 5,7
Maljoom looks the unluckiest horse to run at Royal Ascot in some time in that St James’s Palace Stakes! Finished very fast into fourth having suffered a nightmare run!
What a race! #RoyalAscot
— Sky Sports Racing (@SkySportsRacing) June 14, 2022
Coroebus shows real heart to hold on in the St James's Palace Stakes...pic.twitter.com/nZ54U2QoSP
Updated
St James's Palace Stakes (4.20pm)
And they’re off ... Lusail has the lead from My Prospero ... Coroebus is back in fourth on the inside ... Maljoom is last ... turning for home and Lusail goes for it but Coroebus is stuck ... he gets up on inside and wins a very scrappy race with plenty to look back on in the replay!
Updated
St James's Palace Stakes (4.20pm) betting
- Coroebus – 5/6
- My Prospero – 5/1
- Majloom – 12/1
- Mighty Ulysses – 12/1
- Lusall – 22/1
- Berkshire Shadow – 33/1
- Angel Bleu – 50/1
- New Energy – 50/1
- Aikhal – 50/1
- Bayside Boy – 50/1
- Wexford Native – 50/1
- Full Oddschecker betting
Updated
St James's Palace Stakes (4.20pm) preview
The traditional feature of the opening day gives Coroebus, the 2,000 Guineas winner, a chance to confirm himself as the leader of his generation over a mile and Charlie Appleby’s colt could well set off as the second odds-on shot of the meeting in only the fourth race. He should probably be unbeaten too, having looked an unlucky loser when a neck behind Royal Patronage in the Royal Lodge last season, and he showed an impressive turn of foot to take control at Newmarket last time before staying on to win by three-quarters of a length.
All four of his races so far have been down the straight at Newmarket, however, and his first test around a bend will come with several fresh and very interesting rivals in opposition. William Haggas takes on the favourite with My Prospero, the Heron Stakes winner, and Maljoom, while Mighty Ulysses, second under a big weight and in a really strong time on his handicap debut at Haydock in May, might not be entirely out of the reckoning either for John and Thady Gosden.
MALJOOM in particular could be an each-way option against the favourite and his win in the German 2,000 Guineas last time is well worth a look. For the second race running, he was very slow to stride and still had plenty to do turning in, but he ran down a rival who had got first run on him with ease. Unbeaten in three, he could be quite a talent and there would be no better place to announce his arrival at the three-year-olds’ top table.
Will Nature Strip run on Saturday and try to follow up at the meeting in the Platinum Jubilee Stakes? Winning trainer Chris Waller tells Oli Bell on ITV Racing: “We’ll see how he is but no decision will be made today.”
Here’s where Golden Pal lost the race at the start by jinking as he got out of the stalls ...
Not an ideal break...@LynchySSR and @McGracing take a closer look at Golden Pal's start in the King's Stand #RoyalAscot pic.twitter.com/qeKSuUyvxn
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 14, 2022
King's Stand Stakes (3.40pm) result
1 Nature Strip (James McDonald) 9-4
2 Twilight Calls (R L Moore) 11-1
3 Acklam Express (Rowan Scott) 200-1
17 ran
Also: 15-8 Fav Golden Pal, 16-1 Mooneista 4th
Non Runner: 11 Mondammej (125-1) was withdrawn not under orders. Rule 4 does
not apply.
A win for Australia and Nature Strip in the King's Stand Stakes, who left the chasing field in the dust 🇦🇺#ITVRacing | #RoyalAscot pic.twitter.com/WHMFfJl3cH
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) June 14, 2022
Updated
King's Stand Stakes (3.40pm)
And they’re off ... Mondammej did not start ... Khaadem has lost his jockey ... Nature Strip has the lead and romps away for an easy win from Twilight Calls ... don’t say you weren’t warned.
Updated
Nature Strip looking as laid back as possible ahead of the King’s Stand Stakes but Golden Pal given a negative by noted paddock judge Jin McGrath on Sky Sports Racing ...
Here's Golden Pal! ⚡️
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 14, 2022
The King's Stand is live next on Sky Sports Racing pic.twitter.com/B0GC4NbZMY
Want to watch the Coventry Stakes again and more closely but Persian Force did look to run a very good race there. Very much one to take away from that race ...
Persian Force has actually run a screamer. Winner and third broke from stalls 2 and 1 respectively and raced on the potentially-favoured middle of the track. Persian Force broke from 12 and beat everything he raced around by a considerable margin. Blackbeard can be marked up too pic.twitter.com/AQy53IH1Ll
— Tom Collins (@Tomptin) June 14, 2022
Updated
King's Stand Stakes (3.40pm) betting
- Nature Strip – 5/2
- Golden Pal – 3/1
- Twilight Calls – 9/1
- Mooneista – 12/1
- Man of Promise – 14/1
- Kings Lynn – 14/1
- Lazuli – 25/1
- Existent – 28/1
- Winter Power – 28/1
- Khadeem – 40/1
- Tis Marvellous – 50/1
- Arecibo – 50/1
- Logo Hunter – 66/1
- Ponntos – 66/1
- Equilateral – 80/1
- Saint Lawrence – 100/1
- Mondammej – 150/1
- Acklam Express – 200/1
- Full betting at Oddschecker
Updated
King's Stand Stakes (3.40pm) preview
A race that it is difficult to imagine taking place anywhere but Royal Ascot, as two outstanding speedballs from opposite ends of the globe take each other on over five furlongs for the right to be called the fastest horse on the planet. In one corner, Golden Pal, trained in the States by Wesley Ward, a familiar face at the Royal meeting ever since his Strike The Tiger became the first US-trained winner here in 2009. In the other, Chris Waller’s Nature Strip, a seven-year-old veteran of 37 starts in Australia and eight Group 1 wins. The market was struggling to separate them overnight but Nature Strip has emerged as a narrow 5-2 favourite this morning, with Golden Pal at 100-30, perhaps because punters are a little wary of Ward’s runners after two defeats on his previous trips across the Pond.
One of those, in last season’s Nunthorpe at York, was certainly disappointing, but his run over today’s course and distance in the Norfolk Stakes in 2020 was much better, as he was overhauled only in the closing stages on ground that was a little softer than ideal. Both of the principals arrive on the back of an impressive win in April and while there are 16 more horses in the race – including interesting contenders in Twilight Calls, Mooniesta and the Queen’s King’s Lynn – they probably need both of the principals to under-perform markedly to be in with a real shout. That is unlikely, and I’ll throw in my lot with GOLDEN PAL, who looked at least as good as ever on his return to action and will appreciate today’s quicker ground for his second start at Royal Ascot.
And here’s footage of Baaeed winning the opener so you can make up your own minds...
Special racehorse! Baaeed is a stunning winner of the Queen Anne Stakes 🙌 #RoyalAscot pic.twitter.com/aIfHGBJlX6
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 14, 2022
Coventry Stakes (3.05pm) result
1 Bradsell (Hollie Doyle) 8-1
2 Persian Force (Rossa Ryan) 3-1
3 Royal Scotsman (Jim Crowley) 12-1
17 ran
Also: 5-2 Fav Blackbeard 4th
Updated
Coventry Stakes (3.05pm)
And they’re off ... Ti Sento and Royal Scotsman are fast away but Rousing Encore leads ... Bradsell makes a big move and takes the lead with Persian Force finishing well into second and Royal Scotsman staying on well to finish third. Hollie Doyle has her first winner of the week!
Hollie Doyle and Bradsell, at 8-1, win the Coventry Stakes. A fantastic ride from Hollie Doyle to claim her third @Ascot victory 🏆#ITVRacing | #RoyalAscot pic.twitter.com/1LL9cwWyeO
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) June 14, 2022
Updated
Good point ...
Not sure Murtagh and Turner on ITV are giving Real World the credit he deserves, which in turn does Baaeed a disservice. He's a proper Group 1 horse and Baaeed was hardly out of cruise control to put him in his place for the second time running.
— Mark Milligan (@mark_milligan73) June 14, 2022
Well that was fairly smooth for Baaeed. William Haggas reiterated after the victory that his winning horse will be going to York in August to run over ten furlongs in the Juddmonte International and he’s mulling whether to go to Goodwood for the Sussex Stakes first. Baaeed is now 6-4 from 7-4 for the Juddmonte and 4-7 from 4-6 for the Sussex Stakes with Betfair by the way. You can read my full report here.
"It's unnatural for a horse with that pedigree to show such a turn of foot!"
— Sky Sports Racing (@SkySportsRacing) June 14, 2022
Safe to say @JimCrowley1978 was impressed with Baaeed! #RoyalAscot pic.twitter.com/OApGj6oJfB
Updated
Coventry Stakes (3.05pm) betting
- Persian Force – 3/1
- Blackbeard - 7/2
- Age of Kings – 11/2
- Bradsell – 8/1
- Royal Scotsman – 9/1
- Rousing Encore - 18/1
- Scholarship – 22/1
- Harry Time – 28/1
- Remarkable Force – 33/1
- Show Respect – 33/1
- Holguin – 40/1
- Paddy’s Day – 50/1
- Late September – 50/1
- Ti Sento – 66/1
- Lakota Blue – 150/1
- Waiting All Night – 150/1
- Kings Crown – 200/1
- Full Oddschecker betting
Coventry Stakes (3.05pm) preview
The likely favourite here, Charlie Appleby’s Noble Style, was a notable absentee when the final field of 17 was declared on Sunday morning, but the first Group Two juvenile event of the new season still promises to be highly informative and competitive with no fewer than 14 runners in the field arriving on the back of a win last time out. Seven of those are unbeaten, including Persian Force, who has been backed in to favouritism over the last couple of days, and Aidan O’Brien’s Blackbeard, who has managed to squeeze in three runs already this season.
Persian Force runs in the colours of football super-agent Kia Joorabchian, who has even more horses than players in his stable these days after getting into racing in a serious way just four years ago, and has made short work of his opponents in two races so far but there are any number of runners here that could find enough improvement to win. Royal Scotsman, Age Of Kings and Scholarship are all on the shortlist, but I’ll be taking a chance that BRADSELL and Hollie Doyle will build on a highly-impressive nine-length debut win at York in May. The ground was good-to-soft there, which might have exaggerated the margin a little, but Bradsell’s winning time was extremely strong in the circumstances despite the ease of his victory.
Queen Anne Stakes (2.30pm) result
1 Baaeed (Jim Crowley) 1-6 Fav
2 Real World (D Tudhope) 15-2
3 Order Of Australia (R L Moore) 18-1
7 ran
Also: 25-1 Chindit 4th
Queen Anne Stakes (2.30pm)
And they’re off ... Order Of Australia leads with Baaeed in midfield ... Real World is prominent as the field splits into two ... Baaeed follows Real World ... He comes with his challenge and takes up the running and is pushed out for a two-length win from Real World.
Updated
Bruce Millington, former editor of the Racing Post, with an interesting observation from the track ...
The Queen-less procession just went past in total silence. None of the usual rapturous applause and cheers. I wonder what the future holds for the royal fam.
— Bruce Millington (@brucemillington) June 14, 2022
Updated
The Royal Procession is on its way ...
The Royal Procession at @Ascot! The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall are in the first carriage today, with Her Majesty The Queen unfortunately not in attendance... #RoyalAscot pic.twitter.com/WOFJZKAUs2
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 14, 2022
Baaeed is rated the best racehorse in the world so it’s no surprise he’s such a short price for the first race today. Here’s his win at Ascot on Champions Day last year for those who don’t know about the horse some are mentioning in the same breath as Frankel, widely recognised as the greatest of all-time.
BAAEED is back! 🙌🐴
— Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) June 14, 2022
He will be running in today's QUEEN ANNE STAKES at #RoyalAscot! Who remembers this win from last year's Queen Elizabeth II Stakes?! pic.twitter.com/jj7Jwmlxpt
Updated
Queen Anne Stakes (2.30pm) betting
- Baaeed – 1/6
- Real World – 8/1
- Order of Australia – 25/1
- Chindit – 28/1
- Lights On – 50/1
- Sir Busker – 50/1
- Accidental Agent – 66/1
- Full betting at Oddschecker
Queen Anne Stakes (2.30pm) preview
With 34 more races to come after the Queen Anne Stakes, there is little point getting involved with the hot favourite, Baaeed, at what is sure to be a very skinny price. This will, hopefully, be one of those races where you simply admire the magnificence of a brilliant racehorse, doing what it was born and bred to do. William Haggas’s colt is unbeaten in seven starts and picked up where he left off last season with his most impressive success to date in the Lockinge Stakes at Newbury last month.
Real World, the second-favourite today, was unbeaten in five starts on turf prior to that race but was swatted aside with ease by Baaeed, who needed little persuasion to go three-and-a-quarter lengths clear at the line. Baaeed will need to be way below his best to get beaten, and could easily improve further on his form to date as he remains lightly-raced for a four-year-old. A performance that will still stand out as the meeting draws to a close on Saturday evening is a tantalising possibility.
The Tote is now really worth a look for a bet, especially on big racedays like this with the World Pool in action at Royal Ascot. I asked a Tote spokesman to explain:
“It’s the Tote – but not as you knew it. This week’s Royal Ascot will be the biggest meeting yet for the new Tote, as the pool-betting operator gathers serious momentum, with the UK pool turnover up 50% year-on-year to date. Results from the Derby meeting highlighted that – after major product developments in the last year - the Tote is now a crucial weapon in any punter’s armoury.
“The Epsom stats were: Tote Win beat SP in 11 of the 14 races. The Tote total Win overround was 105% - competitive with the exchanges - vs SP overround of 116%. While the Tote Exacta beat CSF on 11 out of 14 races and Tote Trifecta beat Tricast on 6 out of 9 races. The Derby itself was the biggest win pool for a race (£5.2m net pools, and over £6.3m gross turnover).
“In the 10 minutes leading up to a race, the Pool is the only venue punters can regularly access market-beating prices. This is “Tote Time” and becoming much-used by big punters who simply can’t “get on” anywhere else. Conversely, the Tote accepts bets of up to £20,000 and never closes accounts just because a punter is winning.
“At Royal Ascot and other major meetings, there are also free-to-enter, play-to-earn daily betting tournaments. This week, the tournament offers both cash prizes and even a trip to the Arc De Triomphe for the overall winner.”
Tote racing director, Jamie Hart, said: “The stats are speaking for themselves – the Tote is now really picking up the pace and delivering large, liquid pools for punters. Given the figures produced at the Derby weekend I am very confident we will continue breaking records throughout Royal Ascot.”
Updated
Oisin Murphy is everywhere ... but on a horse! The champion jockey is currently suspended after he admitted a series of breaches of the alcohol regulations and a serious breach of the British Horseracing Authority’s Covid protocols in September 2020 but he and his PR team seem determined to make sure he’s not still front and centre and he makes his highest profile return since his suspension began when he returns to our screens this week as a pundit on Sky Sports Racing.
He’s also been seen giving his Royal Ascot tips (“Baaeed is the best bet of the week” I ask you!) to various betting organisations and he has been appearing on the Racing Post’s social media channels while his name was splashed across the front of the Racing Post 48 hours before the Derby Festival as he gave his tip for the big race.
Some aren’t comfortable with this and there’s certainly been a negative reaction among racing followers on social media. Jack Keane at the Sun wrote an article in which he asked “you have to wonder how seriously Murphy is taking his recovery. A reliable source, who I trust, says he spotted Murphy with a pint at Newbury races last month.” The piece is well worth a read.
Royal Ascot 2022 🏇
— Betfred (@Betfred) June 13, 2022
What's your NAP of the day? 🤔
Former Champion Oisin Murphy thinks Baaeed is "the best bet of the week" 💰
Updated
It has to be highly likely the Queen will be absent from most of Royal Ascot if not every day and a release from the BritishGambler.co.uk site caught my eye this morning. A spokesperson said: “With the announcement that the Queen won’t be attending the first day of Royal Ascot, many punters are disappointed as the Queen’s Hat betting market has become one of the public’s favourite fun bets. We asked a leading bookmaker for the odds on who will be the next member of the royal family to take on the ‘hat bets’ mantle and they went: 1-4 Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, 2-1 Anne, Princess Royal, 6-1 Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, 12-1 Zara Phillips and 18-1 Sophie, Duchess of Wessex.”
Updated
Royal Procession Stakes (2pm)
... and here are the runners and riders ...
1st Carriage
The Prince of Wales
The Duchess of Cornwall
Mr. Peter Phillips
2nd Carriage
The Duke of Gloucester
The Duchess of Gloucester
Prince Michael of Kent
Princess Michael of Kent
3rd Carriage
The Princess Royal
The Lord de Mauley
Mr. William Nunneley
Mrs. William Nunneley
4th Carriage
Earl of Hopetoun
Countess of Hopetoun
Mr. Tom Hooper
The Lady Alexandra Hooper
Poignantly, there are only three ‘runners’ in the first carriage with the Queen missing ...
Queen a non-runner
The Queen will not be attending the first day, according to press reports just now ...
Queen to skip first day of Royal Ascot - but asks other royals to attend instead https://t.co/yCPA9ZIM6H pic.twitter.com/Jk0EI3f87K
— Mirror Royal (@MirrorRoyal) June 14, 2022
It’s almost that time ... the royal procession down the track is back at about 2pm (for the first time since 2019) and we can expect the details of who will be in it at midday. The Queen is a doubtful runner at Ascot given her mobility issues and is expected to arrive by car if she does attend the first day.
I attended a Serpentine gallery exhibition by artist Mark Wallinger back in 1994 when one of his installations, called ‘Royal Ascot’, consisted of a series of video monitors on top of wheeled flight cases, each isolating the royal carriage’s leisurely progress down the track on the Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday (respectively, as it was then) of the meeting with the added TV commentary.
The British Council described the work thus: ‘Simultaneous footage exposes precise choreography: the Queen’s frozen smile and rigid curls, the tilt of her head, her gloved wave, the Duke of Edinburgh raising his top hat, the national anthem striking up. Appropriately for an event whose media coverage focuses on the parade of hats and dresses rather than the sport, here we have a close-up on clothes, on the Queen’s dolly mixture of pinks, tangerines, limes; the difference from day to day is barely discernible, just as the four BBC commentaries merge in a confused blather. This repetition of imagery, all backed by bright green turf, brings into play Andy Warhol’s late screenprints of Elizabeth II from his ‘Reigning Queens’ series (1985), a quartet of the postage stamp icon in camp conjugations of Hollywood make-up and bubblegum colours.’
This is the 2018 opening day procession, presented by Mike Vince. See if you can spot the difference this year (aside from Her Majesty not being on board) ...
Non-runner news
Don’t back these, they’re not turning up
4.20pm St James’s Palace Stakes
5 Checkandchallenge
6.10pm Copper Horse Handicap
7 Benaud (Self Certificate – Not Eaten Up)
Going news
It’s fast out there and with a “Scorchio” forecast for the next few days it can only get quicker. The official going for day one of Royal Ascot is Good to Firm, Good in places. with the GoingStick readings at 8am recorded as: Stands side: 8.8; Centre: 8.6 Far side: 8.6; Round: 7.4. In plain English that means the stands side is the quickest (the higher the reading the faster they go), just ... and as is usual the round course (where you find Swinley Bottom) is slower.
The current forecast for the week indicates a dry week through to Saturday with temperatures of 23c on Tuesday due to rise to 26c on Friday. There is currently a risk of thunderstorms on Saturday. It is likely, as long as the forecast remains settled, that the course will water after racing each evening.
Updated
Preamble
Good morning from Royal Ascot, where the sun is beating down (as it may well do all week) and tens of thousands of racegoers are humming the Ascot Gavotte to themselves as they stroll around the lawns. Or perhaps that’s just me.
Anyway, it’s the first opening day at the Royal meeting for three years with no Covid restrictions to reduce or, indeed, lock out the crowd altogether, which is a thought to lift the spirits of racing fans everywhere despite everything else that’s going on in the world. And the Tuesday card is, by fairly recent tradition, the purists’ day, with three Group One events – nearly half the total for the entire week – on what is now a seven-race card.
It all kicks off, as it did 10 years ago, with the world’s official top-rated horse going to post for the Queen Anne Stakes. In 2012, it was Frankel, this time around it is Baaeed, the first horse in a decade who can even be mentioned in the same breath as the wonder horse himself.
Frankel put up the best single performance of his career in the 2012 Queen Anne, enough to see his Timeform rating rise to 147, the highest in that operation’s history. Baaeed’s current Timeform mark is 134, thanks to a ruthless dismantling of his field in the Lockinge Stakes at Newbury last month, which is none too shabby, but also shows the gap that will need to be bridged if he is to even approach Frankel’s unprecedented standard.
Elsewhere on today’s card, the eyes of the racing world will be on the King’s Stand Stakes at 3.40 as Golden Pal and Nature Strip, the fastest turf sprinters in the US and Australia respectively, scorch down the five-furlong course alongside 16 opponents. Coroebus, the 2,000 Guineas winner, attempts to back up his Classic-winning form in the St James’s Palace Stakes at 4.20, while the two-and-a-half mile Ascot Stakes Handicap will see several of jump racing’s leading names, including Willie Mullins, Gordon Elliott and Dan Skelton, attempting to stick it to their Flat-based counterparts.
Add in the Group Two Coventry Stakes at 3.05, the first big juvenile event of the season, and it’s quite an afternoon in prospect.
There is no sign as yet of any relaxation in Royal Ascot’s strict dress code as a result of the warm weather, but the horses will all get the benefit of the high-temperature regime both before and after their races, so hopefully there will be no issues there.
There is no news as yet on whether the Queen will be able to attend the opening day, but while we are waiting to hear, thoughts (and tips) for the card are here. The best place to get all the news, results and reactions will be right here on the blog, so keep refreshing, folks.
