Be Brave and keep Mission and Fingal onside in the Britannia June 18, 2025 THERE are some fiendishly difficult puzzles to solve this week, but perhaps none more so than the 29-runner Britannia Stakes (5.00pm). Not only is the draw likely to play a huge part, half the field at least are totally unexposed and almost certainly well handicapped. That said, Ralph Beckett’s BRAVE MISSION leaps off the page [...]
Illinois ready to make Light of Gold Cup challenge June 18, 2025 WE HAVE reached the midpoint of Royal Ascot 2025, and for many tomorrow features the pinnacle of the meeting, the Gold Cup (4.20pm). A unique test, run over a trip of two-and-a-half miles, the field pass in front of the stands before embarking on one full lap of the Berkshire course. Any inadequacies in the [...]
Rogue Legend set to Hurri-home in the Windsor Castle June 17, 2025 THERE will be plenty of opinions expressed about the impact of the draw this week and the reality is that most pre-race opinions on potential biases are normally proved wrong. Most might say that you want to be drawn middle to high, but there is no getting away from the fact that the key protagonists [...]
Carmers is one to put Twomey in the big time June 17, 2025 AIDAN O’Brien has made the Queen’s Vase (3.05pm) his own in recent years. The master of Ballydoyle has won the race eight times and equalled Sir Henry Cecil’s record of victories in the race last year with Thursday’s Gold Cup favourite Illinois. Bookmakers seem to expect O’Brien’s Shackleton to take that tally to nine wins [...]
A case of True Love for O’Brien backers in Queen Mary June 17, 2025 DAY TWO of Royal Ascot gets underway with the Group Two Queen Mary Stakes (2.30pm) for the flying two-year-old fillies up Ascot’s straight five furlongs. Remarkably, Aidan O’Brien has never won this race, but he looks to have a strong chance this year with TRUE LOVE, a daughter of No Nay Never. She was second [...]
Flow of money for The Liffey hints at huge Hunt Cup win June 17, 2025 HANDICAPS over the straight course at Royal Ascot are definitely not for the faint hearted. They usually feature huge fields, leading to blanket finishes with runners spread out across the track. Luck can also play a major role, as the speed can often hold up on one side of the track better than the other, [...]
Serialise’s chance more than O-Kay in Kensington Palace June 17, 2025 A FIELD of 24 go to post for the fiercely competitive looking Kensington Palace Stakes (5.35pm) for fillies over the straight mile. Royal runner Rainbows Edge looks the one to beat, following a gutsy course and distance win on fast ground last month. She looked a potential Group-class filly that day and she could be [...]
Map out the winning path at Ascot with French star June 17, 2025 Wednesday’s feature race is the Group One Prince of Wales’s Stakes (4.20pm), and this year’s renewal shapes up as one of the highlights of the week on paper. There’s a French flavour to the contest, with two runners making the trip across the Channel. Jérôme Reynier’s Facteur Cheval returns to Ascot after finishing second in [...]
The Punter Podcast Episode 35: Royal Ascot 2025 Preview June 17, 2025 Tom Marriott and Bill Esdaile preview the 2025 Royal Ascot meeting, giving their best bets for across the five days. The Punter Pod also welcomes Japanese horse racing expert Toshi Onikubo of Netkeiba to discuss the chances of Satono Reve in the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes. The Punter ‘The Punter’ has been City AM’s [...]
Manx the Man to beat the Jumps boys and scale Ascot heights June 16, 2025 JUMPS trainers targeting Royal Ascot handicaps with their classier types has become a regular theme at the meeting and this year looks no different. Willie Mullins is, if we’re honest, not just a Jumps trainer, but it’s fair to say that most punters know him as the all-conquering king of Cheltenham and the reigning Grand [...]