Daily Racing Thread Tuesday 16th June 2026

[QuarterMoonII]

Tuesday’s meetings:

Royal Ascot (Flat) 2.30 – 6.10 (ITV) Good to Firm (Good in places) watered
Thirsk (Flat) 2.15 – 5.20 Good (Good to Soft in places)
Stratford (NH) 2.05 – 5.10 Good (Good to Firm in places)
Beverley (Flat) 6.30 – 9.00 Soft (Good to Soft in places)
Wolverhampton (Flat) 5.45 – 8.54 Standard


Going reports as per Sunday 14th June.

 

[LG]

My picks for Day One at Ascot:

Docklands
Great Barrier Reef
Jakajaro
Bow Echo
Reaching High
Hateem
Valiancy

Good luck all.

 

[QuarterMoonII]

Just nine are declared for the opening Queen Anne Stakes and the race is devoid of any betting interest. Notable Speech made use of race fitness to win the Lockinge and there is no obvious reason why those vanquished at Newbury (runner-up More Thunder, third Zeus Olympios that I backed, sixth Damysus and seventh Cicero’s Gift) should reverse that running unless the runner-up comes on a bundle for that reappearance. Docklands caused an upset in this last year with today’s favourite only fourth; however, he has only won a Listed race since whilst the Godolphin colt has three wins at the highest level. Ten Bob Tony won a Group 3 on Derby day but needs to find a stone to get involved at this level. Charlie Appleby has two other representatives but Group 3 performer First Conquest has not won in fourteen months and is in the same boat as Ten Bob Tony leaving Opera Ballo (a Group 1 winner in Meydan) as the main rival to the favourite.

I do not touch the juveniles at this meeting and the only way to go in the Coventry would probably be to dutch the Ballydoyle contenders to avoid being on the wrong one.

The feature race, the St James’s Palace Stakes sees just six starters, of whom only four are realistic win bets. Talk Of New York has quite a bit to find on his two Listed victories to date and Puerto Rico is a Group 1 winning juvenile but disappointed only finishing a close fourth in the Poulains, although it is noted that the winner Rayif has defected from today’s race at the declaration stage. Gstaad won the Irish 2000 Guineas convincingly (Power Blue more than four lengths fourth) with Distant Storm three lengths second. At Newmarket Distant Storm was eight lengths behind in third whilst Gstaad was easily beaten by Bow Echo, who I expect to confirm that superiority at odds on today.

Generally I avoid the big field handicaps at Ascot. The Ascot Stakes will probably be won by some slow old plodder from a National Hunt or dual purpose yard and The King’s horse is ridiculously short purely because of the Mullins/Moore combination. The Copper Horse Stakes also features runners from those stalwarts of the flat Henry De Bromhead and Alan King; and a short-priced favourite from the Haggas barn.

The King Charles III Stakes is the first of the week’s big sprints and looks a nightmare. We might have some idea after the Coventry whether there is any draw bias (as there was on some days last year) but it is not difficult to draw a line through a large number of the runners – as the betting suggests. Ain’t Nobody, Cover Up, Getreadytorumble, Jm Jungle, Shagraan, Azure Angel, First Instinct, Frost At Dawn, Heavenly Heather, Mgheera, Miss Attitude and Aspect Island are all here chasing minor prize money and possibly causing traffic trouble. Jakajaro won a couple of handicaps but was behind Night Raider and last year’s winner American Affair at Haydock, where Asfoora (winner of this two years ago) was last. Starlust, fourth in this last year, returned to action after a spell at stud looking rusty at Carlisle (rearranged from Haydock). Big Mojo was down the field in what used to be the Duke Of York Stakes and only has one career win at this trip and ran in the six furlong Commonwealth Cup in 2025. Time For Sandals has never won at this trip and was behind Big Mojo at York. Other than Aspect Island there are two other three year olds in the field: Behike won a maiden on the Lingfield kitty litter followed by a novice race on the turf there, both over six furlongs, and this is a stiff upward trajectory from that; whilst Mission Central collected a pair of Listed races at Naas at this trip but is a fifth of the odds because of where he lives. Rosy Affair is drawn towards the middle so her jockey can choose which way to go if the field splits but she only has one win at this trip (a handicap in 2024) and needs to step up on her Listed race form. Her biggest win to date was in a Deauville Group 3 but she won’t find heavy ground today. There are two French raiders. Monteille is a bit of a conundrum, being talented on her day but only eighth in this last year and comes in having not run since a six furlong Group 1 race in Meydan back in March. Rayevka was third in the Commonwealth Cup in 2025 after winning a six furlong Chantilly Listed race. She comes here after winning a Longchamp Group 3 at this trip; however, that third last year is her only career placing on quick ground. Old boy Rumstar has clearly been laid out for this since finishing second in the Palace House Stakes. He won that last year but was down the field in the far side group in this race where there was a clear draw bias. The winner of the Palace House, Night Raider, was also in that doomed group last year. He followed up the HQ win in the Temple Stakes at Haydock and looks the best prospect of the home win. The unknown package of the race is the visitor from Down Under that will go off favourite. Overpass could blitz these but at 2/1 from his low draw I am not interested as he normally runs over further and might not get away on today’s quick ground.

That only leaves me one race to find a first day bet and I am not even going to bother to look. I backed the winner Haatem last year and he is back to defend his title. His connections have three runners and I would be more inclined to go with French raider Map Of Stars than Hannon’s charge as he failed to win in three subsequent starts and has been expensive to follow over the years. I could not back Map Of Stars as he has done all his winning on easy ground although he was fourth in the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes in 2025 on quick ground. The two best horses in the race are probably Wimbledon Hawkeye, only fifth in the Brigadier Gerard on return, and Ancient Wisdom, yet to race this term and perhaps better on easy ground.

 

[Bustino74]

Hopefully, a tough day for the bookies at Ascot.

The King also has Lorca's Waltz running in the 7pm at Beverley. Gelded and in the last chance saloon.

 

[OddDog]

Good to see Bow Echo win again. He definitely keeps a bit for himself at the moment (reminds me a bit of Sea The Stars in that respect) but I do hope he can go on and sweep all before him this season.

 

[OddDog]

Little e/w on the bottom one Kizlyar in the Ascot Stakes

 

[OddDog]

Little e/w on the bottom one Kizlyar in the Ascot Stakes

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM

 

[QuarterMoonII]

When you are a TV pundit, you are expected to talk. The smart ones will try gathering as much useful information as they can before they open their mouths. ITV does not appear to be blessed with many smart ones.

In the opening Queen Anne Stakes, the pacesetting Opera Ballo went too fast for the first two furlongs and that set the race up for the hold-up horses. Notable Speech proved that he just does not like Ascot: three starts, three defeats – now twice in this race. A great result for the layers with Ten Bob Tony catching the well-backed More Thunder in the shadow of the post.

The first big field of the week on the straight course and it would be hard to say that there was a draw bias as almost all the field in the Coventry Stakes came stands’ side, although the winner only drifted over there late. Dutching the Ballydoyle runners would have paid off but this may not turn out to be a vintage renewal with a small blanket covering quite a few at the line.

The Aussies did not steal the King Charles III but it was a rare occasion to feel sorry for the French as their filly Rayevka was mugged on the line by Irish three year old Mission Central. While she experienced traffic troubles, Ryan Moore’s colt finished with a rattle from the rear to lead where it mattered. I hope that O’Blarney is not going to name check half of Ireland every time he is interviewed in the winner’s enclosure this week.

I was quite amused after the St James’s Palace Stakes when Billy Loughnane described the win as not one of his best rides. He might have forgotten that he is only twenty so it is not like he has ridden 7,000 races. I had expected Bow Echo to win by at least a couple of lengths but it was more like a flashback to Frankel scrambling home in the same race against an O’Brien horse. Clearly Gstaad is a very good colt but I think that Bow Echo is a better one and will end up the champion miler. Hopefully the Sussex Stakes will see the best of the older horses turn up to make it a proper test rather than a small field tactical race.

Will Willie Mullins be spending the night in the Tower of London after The King’s horse trailed in last in the Ascot Stakes?