The British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes is the middle of the five Group 1s run on Champions Day at Ascot this Saturday. With a ten-strong field featuring a former ante-post Arc favourite, it could be one of many cracking races this weekend and GG tipster Joe Napier previews the race with his verdict.
#AD 18+ New Customer offer – Use promo code YSKAST. Place a min £5 bet on the sportsbook at odds of min EVS (2.0) and get £30 in free bets. Free bet rewards valid for 30 days. Only deposits via Debit Cards & Apple Pay will qualify for this offer. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly
Favourites
You would have got long odds about Kalpana going winless a year on from her devastating victory in this race 12 months ago. Her win in 2024 was bloodless, but it has been a frustrating campaign this term, albeit with four of her five defeats coming at Group 1 level, including a third in the Tattersall’s Gold Cup, second in the King George and seventh two weeks ago in the Arc. At her best, she has a clear form edge, but it has been a busy season and she was a disappointing odds-on favourite in the Group 3 September Stakes at Kempton too.
Her big market rival is Estrange, who has promised to step up to Group 1 company for some time. This meeting would traditionally be ideal for her, but for once, the ground is set to be on the quick side, which does not suit David O’Meara’s almost white filly. Even so, she managed a gallant second to Minnie Hauk in the Yorkshire Oaks on good ground last time and could still have more to offer.
The up-and-comer in the line-up could be Waardah for Owen Burrows. She has claimed Listed and Group 2 wins at Goodwood the last twice over 1m2f and 1m6f. This will be the first time she has raced over 1m4f, but she should cope with it, albeit she has never raced on quicker than good-to-soft going.
Contenders
The joker in the pack could be Francis-Henri Graffard’s Quisisana, who has been a mover in the market since declarations. The daughter of Le Havre had been unbeaten in 2025, including a debut Group 1 win in the 1m2f Prix Jean Romanet at Deauville in August before only ninth in the Arc. She does stay 1m4f and copes with good ground, so if fit just 13 days on from the Arc, she could be a big danger.
Aidan O’Brien’s number one candidate is Bedtime Story, though the French Oaks runner-up has been very busy of late. 1m4f on good ground could prove ideal, but she has possibly been racing too often, whereas Wemightakedlongway, for Joseph O’Brien, had a 78-day break after her Irish Oaks second when a half-length fourth in the Prix de l’Opera on Oaks weekend. Stepping back up in distance should suit her and there is no Minnie Hauk in the way here.
Another Irish contender in the Wathnan Racing colours is One Look. Paddy Twomey’s filly was narrowly in front of Wemightakedlongway last time, but while she copes with good ground, she is possibly slightly better on soft, while 1m4f has to be considered an unknown both in experience and on breeding.
#AD 18+ New Customer offer – Use promo code YSKAST. Place a min £5 bet on the sportsbook at odds of min EVS (2.0) and get £30 in free bets. Free bet rewards valid for 30 days. Only deposits via Debit Cards & Apple Pay will qualify for this offer. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly
Outsiders
The Gosden yard have won this three times since 2016, with Danielle their sole representative this season. She has only won once in ten starts, but has finished close up behind Waardah and within two lengths of Estrange this term.
She is another for whom good ground may not suit though, as is also the case with the wildcard Ballet Slippers for Aidan O’Brien. The daughter of Dubawi and Magical, who won this in 2019, she shaped promisingly as a juvenile and should have plentiful stamina, but has only been able to race once this term, finishing ninth in the Group 2 Blandford Stakes in September. Nevertheless, she is an unknown quantity who should not be entirely discounted.
A second French contender in the field is Latakia, also for Graffard. She had been improving likeably, including a Group 2 victory at Deauville over 1m4f on good-to-soft, before being well beaten in the Group 1 Prix de Royallieu over 1m6f. That race may just have taken too much out of her for all this contest should suit much better.
Verdict
Kalpana is the one to beat, but one who may come here fresher from a less taxing race on Arc weekend is WEMIGHTAKEDLONGWAY. Joseph O’Brien’s filly chased Minnie Hauk all the way in the Irish Oaks, had 78 days off, and was then a close fourth in the Group 1 Prix de l’Opera, which may have her spot on for this. Arc ninth and French raider Quisisana is feared, with the ground potentially on the sharp side for both Estrange and Waardah, while Ballet Slippers is a fascinating outsider for Aidan O’Brien.
- Wemightakedlongway
- Kalpana
- Quisisana
#AD 18+ New Customer offer – Use promo code YSKAST. Place a min £5 bet on the sportsbook at odds of min EVS (2.0) and get £30 in free bets. Free bet rewards valid for 30 days. Only deposits via Debit Cards & Apple Pay will qualify for this offer. T&Cs apply. Please Gamble Responsibly
Looking For More Racing Info? Check Out Our Racecards & Top Tips Sections
Make sure you’re following us on all our social media platforms to keep up to date with all the latest horse racing news and the best tips.