The Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes gets Royal Ascot off to a bang every year. This year’s race has been blown wide open by the absence of star mare Inspiral, and Joe Napier tries to unearth the winner.
Triple Time sprung a surprise on us all with his 33/1 victory in 2023.
CHARYN
(Roger Varian/Silvestre De Sousa)
Though consistent last season, Charyn came up short in Group company throughout. However, he did place in the St James’s Palace Stakes in 2023 and his performances this term show that he is much more the finished article at four.
His wins in the Doncaster Mile and Sandown Mile were impressive, the latter when the race panned out poorly for him, and he was the only rival who threatened shock front-running winner Audience in the Lockinge at Newbury. He comes out of that race favourably and in great form so is among the likelier winners for all that he does not set an irresistible standard.
FACTEUR CHEVAL
(Jerome Reynier/Maxime Guyon)
He and Charyn mirror each other in many respects, with Facteur Cheval also going through 2023 without a victory despite some high profile near misses. Twice he was runner-up in Group 1 company, including on the straight course here when second to fellow French-trained Big Rock when Ascot bore soft ground.
Quicker surfaces faze Jerome Reynier’s charge far less though, as evidenced when he finally got his head in front in the Dubai Turf over 1m1f at Meydan. That suggests he is still improving as a five-year-old and may now find the winning thread, albeit both of his last two starts imply he might find 1m on a fast surface a little on the sharp side.
BIG ROCK
(Maurizio Guarnieri/Christophe Soumillon)
An exceptional winner of the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on Champions Day, Big Rock looked poise to become the pre-eminent miler of his generation after that six-length triumph. Soft ground clearly aided his cause, but it was a barnstorming success nonetheless.
However, he has since changed yards, with all of those in the Yeguada Centurion colours going to Maurizio Guarnieri, who has not made a flying start with his new star recruits. Equally, good to firm ground is a concern, with him never racing on ground this quick and he is unlikely to be able to dominate from the front as he did the last time he raced here.
AUDIENCE
(John & Thady Gosden/Robert Havlin)
Audience certainly caused a stir when romping home in the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes. It was his first start in Group 1 company, having previously been beaten four times in a row at Group 2 level, and also his first run over 1m. Yet, he never saw another rival, holding off Charyn by just shy of two lengths.
Now he has the tricky second album to contend with. He was one of few who raced purely down the centre at Newbury and was evidently helped by an apparent pace bias. Whether he can do the same at Ascot is very much up for debate, but it is also possible he is a renewed model who is relishing his new trip and should not be dismissed lightly.
THE FIELD
Docklands and Maljoom were second and third in a Listed trial for this race at the start of May, with the former filling the same position in a race of the same level in France since. Both are out-and-out milers, though the latter can turn the form around being so unexposed for a five-year-old and having been desperately unlucky not to win the St James’s Palace Stakes here in 2022.
The other French runner in the field is Dolayli, who has won over 1m4f, but has risen through the ranks after gradually stepping back in trip. There is a chance this will really suit him, as it might Poker Face, who should benefit from a strong gallop; his Lockinge effort is forgiven as he raced against the rail.
Royal Scotsman probably won’t be able to pull the same front-running trick as he did at Epsom, though Witch Hunter could be brought into it from the back of the field. The ground is not soft enough for Brave Emperor, while Cairo, Flight Plan and Hi Royal look up against it.
VERDICT
This is open and could well set up for a similar shock to last year. Charyn and Facteur Cheval will likely be right there, but neither sets the most formidable standard, especially with conditions potentially being on the quick side over this distance for the latter. If Audience can get the lead without too much exertion, he should not be written off, while Maljoom has unfinished business here with improvement still in his profile and Poker Face can be forgiven a disappointment in the Lockinge. His form ties nicely in with Charyn’s, though it may be worth chancing a more left-field option in DOLAYLI. In the betting, he is the third choice of the French triumvirate, but he has only been beaten by short margins in French Group races the last twice, and he is well worth a go over 1m in Group 1 company being a half-brother to a 1m Group 3 winner. The ground should not be an issue and this is a distinctly winnable assignment.
- Dolayli
- Charyn
- Poker Face
