The King & The Royal Stud 2024

Both runners today performed satisfactorily. Serried Ranks seemed to be travelling well but was then both caught flat footed, when the pace really turned on, and then given no room to recover afterwards. He'll do better over 6f next time out.
Desert Hero was beaten a head into 2ndandwould probably have been in front in another 10 yards. Again he seemed 'done' for speed 2f out then was carried slightly right and, though running on in the last half furlong, just failed. I think it was a good performance and a return to 12f will make life easier for him. He certainly showed a good turn of foot once he got going.

 

A third Royal winner as High Order won by 13 lengths in what looked like an egg and spoon race for him at Southwell. He took charge soon after the start and, without too much effort applied, ran away from his field in the last 2f. He was very green in the last furlong (veering left then right) and hopefully will improve a good deal for this experience. Gosden's comments were 'He's learning and needs racing and education. He's got ability and a mile and a half is no problem for him, he could well be a mile-and-six horse later on. I'm happy with him and as long as the shoe coming off doesn't bother him and he's in good order, he won't hang around long before running again'.
He's by Frankel and out of a Dubawi mare called Diploma who won 3 races, including one listed race. He has a full-brother called Warrant Holder, who is yet to be placed with a trainer. There's a Sea the Stars yearling and Diploma was covered by Frankel again last year. Portfolio (by Deep Impact) is a half-sister to High Order and she has a yearling filly by Frankel.
If he matures in time he could be a Queens Vase entrant.

 

Gosden (no Royal 2yos at the moment) has trained all the King's winners so far this year. He has another Royal 3yo, The King's General, being mentioned on the gallops. He is the second live foal of Daphne (by Duke of Marmalade), the first being the useful filly Perfect Alibi (by Le Havre). He had a year end run and though competitive for a while finished last of 6, eight lengths adrift of the winner. I'd look for a12f entry in the coming weeks for this entire colt.

Not really a rash of entries, though it does look as if the first 2yo, Royal Equerry, will make her debut at Salisbury on Sunday. The useful Works of Art goes for a listed 6f race at Chelmsford on Thursday and should get some Black Type.
Gilded Water and Anglepoise are both entered on Monday in the same race at Windsor. It's disappointing to see Slipofthepen withdrawn from his race on Saturday, though he has been mentioned on the gallops. It wouldn't surprise me if he was gelded soon.

 

Royal Equerry kicks off an interesting week for the King. She's the first 2yo to run and on paper has a fine pedigree being by Kingman out of the Danehill Dancer mare Medley who as a race filly won both the Albany and Cherry Hinton. If she's ready Royal Equerry could be the type to win over 5f at Salisbury tomorrow. There are two previous winners in the field however.

On Monday two maidens are entered in the two divisions of the 8f maiden at Windsor. The filly Anglepoise makes her debut in the 2nd Division and Rossa Ryan gets the mount. She's by the speedy Zoustar out of a 12f winning Galileo mare, so should be suited to the distance. She may not be suited to the soft ground. In the 1st Division Gilded Water, who looked like Billy Bunter on his debut at Newmarket, has Marquand in the saddle and if improving on his racecourse debut may go close.

On Wednesday the gallops spotted The King's General makes his seasonal debut in the 10f maiden on the 1st Day of the Chester meeting. By Dubawi out of Daphne (who won 4 races as a 3yo & 4yo) and has bred a good filly in Perfect Alibi, who won 3 races as a 3yo. This colt must be one of the main hopes for this season and hopefully will show well.

On Thursday Stoute's Reaching High goes to Chelmsford and one would expect an improved performance from this Sea the Stars gelding. He runs over 10f which must be the bare minimum for him as he's a son of Estimate.

On Friday Crown Estate, who disappointed at Newmarket has a chance to redeem himself at Ascot. Anglepoise and The King's General have back up entries at Nottingham.

Entries for Royal Ascot are appearing and this week's winner High Order is entered for the Group 2 King Edward VII Stakes, so they do rate him.

 

Works of Art (of whom Balding said in his Spring magazine was a Nell Gwynn possible) finished last on her seasonal debut at Chelmsford: very disappointing. She has much to prove next time out.
Royal Equerry's debut 4th at Salisbury was an unsatisfactory affair. Drawn 6, the horse in 4 careered into the horse in 5, at the start, making it necessary for Ryan to hold up the filly. She recovered her composure and ran on pleasingly in the last furlong. She was 6 lengths behind the winner who beat the other two experienced 2yos home. A 6f race for the King's filly at somewhere like Newbury seems in order if there are no negatives after this start.
The Royal Stud did have a winner over the weekend when Punctuation took a good handicap at Goodwood. He's now a 7yo and has proved himself a useful hurdler too.

Gilded Water must be out to do better today at Windsor. I'd also hope Anglepoise shows a bit more on her 2nd start.

 

Two promising 3rd places today, though a win would have been nice. Gilded Water (backed down from 15-2 to 16-5) went closest but looked to blow up in the last furlong. He perhaps needs a bit more fitness and bit further. Anglepoise (backed down from 33-1 to 15-2) ran very much better but at the business end ran green. She pleasingly straightened out in the last half furlong. They both look as if they will win a maiden.
Biggest news is that Treasure is entered for Saturdays Oaks Trial at Lingfield, with Ryan already marked up as her jockey.
The Kings General was withdrawn from Wednesday's Chester maiden with Gosden preferring to run an Oppenheimer colt. I'd take the signal. The Royal colt could be diverted to Nottingham on Friday. Reaching High looks to Chelmsford with Dobbs booked, though he has got engagements at Haydock and newcastle later in the week..

 

May, so far, could not have been more miserable for the Royal Stud and the King. The biggest disappointment has to be Desert Hero who flopped totally in the 12f Aston Park Stakes. But why was he running having had a good opener at Sandown barely 2 weeks before and only 2 weeks later was to run in the Coronation Cup? It's back to the drawing board with him.
It's much the same with Slipofthepen. He looks a shadow of the horse he looked early in 2023. In his latest run he pulled through to the front 3-4f out and was then swallowed up by 4 of the field. Either he needs to be presented far later in the race or he's a busted flush.
Quite a few horses have run over the last three weeks. Many look capable but none of them won. The years only bright spot seems to be High Order.

A hope has to be the 2yos but only one has raced so far. That runner, Royal Equerry, runs tomorrow at Salisbury. She tackles 6f and hopefully good ground for the first time. Hopefully she will run a decent race tomorrow.

I recall the article Julian Muscat wrote on the death of the Queen in September 2022, where he praised the huge improvement John Warren had made to the strength and quality of The Royal Stud. At this point of the season that improvement looks very brittle.

There are now 17 foals reported to have been born (see page 2 of this thread). Some important foalings are either to be reported or the mares will not foal.

The 3yo Trout Stream who never went into training is reported to have died in late April.

 

The Gosdens get a 2yo. Warrant Holder, a Frankel colt and full-brother to High Order, went into training last week.

Royal Equerry ran much better on Saturday finishing 2nd in what looked a good maiden. Not given a hard race she should pick up her maiden on her next outing.

 

After nearly 5 weeks the King at last has had another winner.. Gilded Water wins a 10f maiden by 7 lengths on his 3rd start at Chepstow. Disappointingly the mare Fiery Sunset was sold (2022 for 170,000gns), which given that Gilded Water's elder brother has just won 2 races in Australia (one a Group 1) should be making it squeeky bum time for Mr Warren.

Maybe Treasure will help him out (even she was slated for the Sales last year!), but it's asking a lot. Would have preferred more rain but she's a good looking filly.

 

Adele Mulrennan said she doubted Treasure would stay and she was proved right as the Royal filly was the first beaten. She beat one other filly home.

Arguably worse was to come when 2024 hope, High Order, was totally outpointed in a handicap at Doncaster. The press were saying this was a stepping stone to an Ascot date: so forget that. The Stewards were unimpressed and interviewed the Gosdens' representative who felt he probably didn't 'get' the 14&1/2f. Looking at his pedigree perhaps it wasn't a surprise as he's by Frankel (no surefire source of stamina) out of a mare who seemed most comfortable at 10f. Earlier foals seemed best at 10f. Back to the drawing board with him.

Estimate's latest 3yo Reaching Highgoes to Leicester in an attempt to lose his maiden tag. I'd reckon it would be disappointing f he doesn't.

Sadly not going well for Charles and Camilla, while Warren looks to be making poor decisions.

 

Could get even worse and prove very, very embarrassing in a couple of weeks time. Being reported that the plan is to run Pied Piper twice at this terms Royal Ascot.

 

mmmm... Reaching High did not improve things.

The Racing Post seems to like Gilded Water and rates him Listed Class already. There is a 2yo Time Test filly who's a half-sister to him and Circle of Fire. Confusingly she's one of the 2yos not fully registered and not named, which suggests she may never go into training. Will she be sold or will she be kept for breeding?
The RP did not like High Order's run and suggested he should be gelded.

I don't know what it is about John Warren but when I see him I immediately think of Monty Python's Upper Class Twit of the Year sketch.

 

Jamais deux sans trois, they say.

First it was the sold Circle of Fire winning an Australian Group 2 and quickly following that with a Group 1. Second, the King's best 3yo now looks to be Gilded Water but the problem is he's a half-brother to Circle of Fire and their dam was sold in December 2022.

Third? Well last November I expressed surprise when the Royal Stud sold their first yearling in my 'racing' memory (and that goes back to 1967). He was a colt by Land Force who fetched 20,000gns. He's a half-brother to four winners including two listed winners, one of whom is the useful Kings Lynn. Yesterday that yearling made his 2yo debut at Lingfield and sauntered home. He's trained by a Mr D Donovan, of whom I know nothing, and apparently his target next week is the Windsor Castle at Royal Ascot. Wouldn't it have cheered up the King to have a Royal Ascot runner?

Bad judgement or bad luck? You decide..
.

 

Forgot to say his name is Kinetic Force

 

https://www.racingpost.com/bloodsto...-of-learning-at-the-royal-studs-aPvqu2T65tQN/ lucky pupils. Never got anything like this when I was at school

 

Surprised Dunfermline didn't get a mention (or did I miss it?). Considering she only won 3 of her 12 races, it's amazing that not only did she win the Oaks but also the St Leger, inflicting the only defeat of double Arc winner Alleged's career. Her sire was Royal Palace, grandsire Ballymoss and damsire St Paddy. Bred and owned by our dear Queen Elizabeth II

 

Oswald, who was stud manager until about 1980 and was involved with the Royal horses since the very early '50s always said that Dunfermiline was her best horse, followed by Highclere and then Aureole.
She had a powerful stud in the '50s which was rather weakened during the '60s and then had a renaissance in the '70s. Then everything went awry.

Dunfermline hardly put a foot wrong as a 2yo and 3yo. She was a bit green as a 2yo but managed places in the May Hill and Fillies Mile. She was only beaten three times as a 3yo. She could only manage 3rd in the Yorkshire Oaks but was unsuited by the slow pace. She was 4th in the Arc but didn't have Carson at his best . For some reason they then decided to run her again in France.
As a 4yo she was slow to come to hand and after two runs midsummer was retired. Apparently once retired she bloomed.
She was a failure at stud.

Can understand Doutelle being mentioned, who would probably have won a Derby if he was around this century.

 

Thanks Bustino. Quoting 3 wins from 12 runs nowhere near did her justice. As you say she ran some cracking races in defeat

She's had a few top horses hasn't she; also not mentioned

 

Almeria
Mulberry Harbour would be one definitely.
High Veldt is supposed to have been very good but had his heart broken by Ribot (asking for too much too soon).
Pall Mall couldn't have been bad.
And I suppose Height of Fashion was the Champion 2yo staying filly of her year..
Perhaps Escorial, Expansive and Example

 

And what about Highclere