Emily Upjohn, as short as 5-2 second favourite for the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes, will miss Ascot in favour of the Irish Oaks.
John and Thady Gosden had been mulling over a clash with Epsom and Curragh Derby winners Desert Crown and Westover for the daughter of Sea The Stars in Ascot’s midsummer clash of the generations a fortnight on Saturday.
But Emily Upjohn, a luckless second in the Cazoo Oaks at Epsom last month, will instead seek a first Group One victory against her own age and gender in the Juddmonte Irish Oaks at the Curragh seven days earlier.
“We’re looking at two races but the Irish Oaks would be the favourite at this stage,” said John Gosden. "I’ve got a lot of respect for both of the two Derby winners from Epsom and Ireland, so we might just stay with the fillies.”
Gosden, whose five King George triumphs came with Nathaniel in 2011, Taghrooda (2014) and the brilliant Enable in 2017, 2019 and 2020, admitted: “I think if we’d won the Oaks we might have been more inclined to look at the King George but we need to get that Group One under her belt.
“That’s why Ireland calls out. She hasn’t done a lot of racing in her life, so that’s one point – she’s a big, rangy girl and she’s just had those few runs, so that will be the way we go.”
Derby hero Desert Crown is a best-priced 11-8 favourite to give veteran trainer Sir Michael Stoute a record seventh King George win. His first was Shergar in 1981.
Meanwhile, Alpinista won her sixth race – and fourth Group 1 – on the trot with a winning comeback in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud on Sunday.
The Sir Mark Prescott-trained daughter of Frankel and Luke Morris overhauled Baratti to score by a length and a quarter, with hot favourite Hurricane Lane beating just one rival home.
“We’d planned to start in the Coronation Cup at Epsom, but she wouldn’t come in her coat – she’s just come right now and, to be honest, I thought the race might come 10 days too soon,” said Prescott, whose mare is now 14-1 (from 33-1) for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp on 2 October.
“I don’t see any reason to be a clever Dick – one more run before the Arc and, conventionally, you’d go for the Prix Vermeille. You would hope she could improve a tiny bit more.”
