Royal Ascot tips: two stayers to step forward on day one

All eyes will understandably be on but there is plenty of racing going on all over the country and my focus in the Racing TV studio will be on Catterick, where looks to be my best bet of the afternoon. A strong pace, which is very likely here, will suit this three-year-old who is taking on older horses for the first time but does look as though he may still have upside in him compared to his older rivals.

Ed Bethell’s gelding scored at Thirsk back in April when ridden by today’s rider and is back on board for the first time since. He ran an excellent second of 19 runners in a competitive 0-80 handicap at York last time and arrives here in very good form. 

did this column -and several others judged by how well he was backed - a massive favour when he won the Stakes over slightly further than this trip last season and it is pretty obvious to me that this is his first major target of this campaign given how well suited this six-year-old is to extreme distances.

Temporize won that Goodwood race a little easier than the winning distance of a length and a quarter suggested and quickened decisively about two furlongs out to go clear - that turn of foot over this trip will help him in the short straight at Ascot. He ran a really encouraging race on his reappearance over two miles and if he has come on from that Goodwood effort three weeks ago he should be ready to shine this afternoon.

has only had one run since joining and he bolted up by nine lengths in a novices hurdle at so he has clearly settled in well in his new surroundings. It is difficult to compare jumps form to efforts on the Flat but it seems pretty clear that Belloccio’s form has not gone backwards since he joined Mullins and given that he was a solid Listed race performer for David Menusier I don’t think a mark of 100 will prove beyond him here.

He didn’t stay when he was tried over two miles on soft ground last season, but he runs as though this 14-furlong trip might now be ideal for him, especially as his trainer is excellent at drawing out stamina in horses - witness last year’s winner of this race, Vauban, who had only ever won up to 12 furlongs on the Flat before he joined Mullins. The market will obviously tell us plenty about this one but I'm thinking he might well be very well backed.