Royal Ascot

Due to having failed to weigh in after finishing third in a race at Nottingham, Rob Hornby has been suspended seven days from June 16-22, and will miss the Royal Ascot meeting. The incident occurred on Sunday, June 2 in a Class 5 handicap at Nottingham with the rider aboard Surrey Belle (GB) (Golden Horn {GB}), who past the post in third as a joint favourite. However, since Hornby did not weigh in, his mount was later disqualified with the stewards' report reading, "The clerk of the scales objected to...

Though she won the May 11 Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies S. at Gulfstream, which qualifies the winner for a trip to the Royal Ascot meeting, Bullet (War Front) will be staying in North America, reports D J Stable's General Manager Jon Green. Horses that win the Royal Palm Juvenile Fillies or the Royal Palm Juvenile S. are offered an automatic berth into a 2-year-old stakes at Royal Ascot plus a $25,000 travel allowance. Gabaldon (Gone Astray), the winner of the Royal Palm division for colts, will make his next start...

Jerome Reynier has the Queen Anne in his sights for stable star Facteur Cheval (Ire) (Ribchester {Ire}) with the Marseille-based trainer bidding to bag a breakthrough Royal Ascot winner later this summer. Facteur Cheval played his part in some memorable Group 1 races last season before securing his own big day in the sun when landing the Dubai Turf on his seasonal debut at Meydan.  That win came off the back of placed efforts in the QEII, Prix du Moulin, Sussex S. and Prix d'Ispahan, with Reynier hoping that his...

Soldi Stable LLC's Gabaldon (Gone Astray), impressive debut victory in Gulfstream's Royal Palm Juvenile May 11, will target the upcoming Royal Ascot meet, according to his trainer Jose D'Angelo Wednesday. The Royal Palm Juvenile, a five-furlong turf sprint for 2-year-olds, offered the winner an automatic stakes berth at Royal Ascot, as well as a $25,000 travel stipend. A $9,000 purchase at last year's OBS October sale, the Florida-bred set half-mile fractions of :21.33 and :43.80 under heavy pressure before kicking clear to win by 1 1/4 lengths in :56.20. "I...

Reigning Gold Cup hero Courage Mon Ami (GB) (Frankel {GB}) will not defend his crown at Royal Ascot after suffering a setback. The five-year-old was bought privately by Wathnan Racing ahead of last year's meeting, having won each of his three previous starts for breeder Anthony Oppenheimer. Courage Mon Ami then provided one of the moments of the meeting as he took the stayers' crown in the hands of Frankie Dettori, before going on to disappoint in the Goodwood Cup and having to settle for second in the Lonsdale Cup...

Kevin Ryan has confirmed that Inisherin (GB) (Shamardal) will be supplemented for the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot following his dominant victory in the Sandy Lane S. at Haydock. Inisherin became the first horse to take the scalp of Vandeek (GB) (Havana Grey {GB}), who could only manage third, on Saturday. Ryan reports the colt to have come out of the 6f contest in rude health and says it is all systems go for Ascot.  "I was delighted with him on Saturday, he's a horse with a lot of speed,"...

Trainer Clive Cox has confirmed that all roads lead to Royal Ascot for Kerdos (Ire) following the four-year-old's victory in Saturday's G2 Temple S. at Haydock. Cox was winning the race for a third time having previously struck in 2016 with Kerdos's sire, Profitable (Ire), and the following year with Priceless (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}), a half-sister to Kerdos's granddam, Ballyalla (GB) (Mind Games {GB}). Profitable went on to win the G1 King's Stand S. at Royal Ascot on his next start and that five-furlong sprint--which will be run...

Star Bloodstock, the consignment that unearthed talents like Malavath (Ire), A'Ali (Ire) and more, is set to wind down its breeze-up operation and concentrate entirely on producing future top-notchers on the racetrack instead.  The shift in focus has reaped immediate rewards with the aptly-named Make Haste (GB) (Blue Point {Ire}), a leading Royal Ascot contender after posting a stunning debut success at Naas for trainer and breeze-up consignor Diego Dias, being snapped up by Gainesway and LNJ Foxwoods.  Bought by Byron Rogers, Star Bloodstock and Dias at the Tattersalls Book...

Joseph O'Brien has laid out an adventure in America for juvenile Group 1-winner Al Riffa (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), the target being the GI Manhattan S. in New York on June 8, in a path eventually routing to the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. After having his sophomore season disrupted by injury, Al Riffa resurfaced in the G1 Prix Ganay at ParisLongchamp and was only beaten by three-quarters of a length in a wild scramble on the wire. O'Brien admits his charge's size is something of a concern, and...

Passenger (Ulysses {Ire}) will look to provide trainer Sir Michael Stoute with a fifth success in the G1 Prince Of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot next month following his triumphant return to action at Chester. Sparingly raced as a three-year-old when his standout performances included an unlucky-in-running third in the G2 Dante S. at York and a narrow victory in the G3 Winter Hill S. at Windsor, Passenger looked an improved model when returning from nearly nine months off with a smooth win in the G3 Huxley S. on the...

Connections of last year's G1 Gold Cup winner Courage Mon Ami (GB) (Frankel {GB}) expect to have a clearer idea later this week as to whether he will be able to defend his crown after he suffered a setback in training. Trained by John and Thady Gosden, Courage Mon Ami graduated from handicaps with a decisive success at Royal Ascot in 2023, beating Coltrane (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) by three quarters of a length to gain his fourth win from as many starts. Beaten twice subsequently last season in the G1...