Royal Ascot: five horses to follow across the week

I can only assume that the reason Notable Speech is around double the price of Rosallion is because Charlie Appleby’s runner disappointed at the Royal meeting last year, but that was on the round mile and, to my mind, he just had an off day.

You can put a line through his other disappointing effort from last year too, where he finished fifth in a falsely run Prix du Moulin on softer ground than he’d have liked. 

Over the straight Ascot mile, I think Notable Speech could be a different proposition, as he is surely likely to be waited with and they almost always get racing half a furlong too soon on the straight course in what is a stiff test. 

He will undoubtedly come on for his fourth in the Lockinge and, if he can replicate the level of form he showed when winning the Guineas or the Sussex Stakes last year, then I think he will go very close.

Ralph Beckett has trained six winners at Royal Ascot, all of which have came in handicaps, and he won the Royal Hunt Cup in 2023. I think he has a great chance of winning it again with Qirat this year.

I am generally a big fan of horses for courses and this half-brother to Bluestocking has produced his two best performances on the straight course at Ascot.

Making his first start for 192 days in the Victoria Cup here last month, he was positioned further forward than the winner and third that day and just got ran out of it by a nose late on in a soundly run race.

He is ground versatile and has only gone up 3lb for his Victoria Cup effort, and if he comes on for that last run, which was a career best effort off a break, he has every chance, although as always, much may depend on the draw.

He has rarely been out of the frame in any of his starts and, at this stage, 16-1 looks good value.

If Illinois really is as good over 2m4f as he is over 1m6f, then he may well win the feature race on Thursday, but he is 13-8 having never ran over further than 1m7f, whilst Trawlerman, a proven stayer over this extreme trip that ran Kyprios close in this race last year is 7-2 – surely he won’t go off that price?

Some people also seem to have forgotten that Trawlerman beat the great Kyprios at this track in 2023, admittedly on softer ground, but even the rest of his form reads well, and if he is near his best then it is hard to see him not going close at least.

All roads have undoubtedly led back to this after he returned the runner-up 12 months ago and he was also hugely impressive when running out a five-length winner of the Henry II Stakes at Sandown last month.

My only concern is he is far older than the average winner, but it is not seem that age is catching up with him yet.

The layers must have forgotten who trains this filly. She went close in two Group Ones last year and improved for her second-placed effort on her seasonal reappearance by finishing a close-up fourth in the French Guineas last month.

The winner of the race, Zarigana, heads the market for the Coronation at no bigger than 13-8, but whilst much was made of the ‘interference’ she suffered when second past the post (I would argue it was extremely minimal, as she never lost any momentum), one jockey in behind who did have to stop riding was Ryan Moore aboard Exactly in fourth.

She was eased in the last few strides and crossed the line just over a length behind the front pair and yet is 6-1 for this race, not to mention she will have the best jockey in the race on board again and a return to a quicker surface should see her be able to utilise her speed.

The twice-raced Falakeyah is half the price of Exactly and looks very talented, but it is hard to say the Pretty Polly form has worked out well, and Kon Tiki is another who is priced shorter than the Ballydoyle challenger and is yet to step outside of Listed company.

William Haggas won the Wokingham Stakes last year with Unequal Love and could win it again this time around with More Thunder, who looks a handicap blot to me here off 98.

I flagged this horse as an ‘eyecatcher’ after the Guineas meeting, which hardly makes me a genius given he was winning for the second time in a row, but I am convinced he is still well-treated and everything points to a big run should he line up in Saturday’s big-field handicap.

Revitalised since being stepped down to 6f by William Haggas this season, he is two from two at Newmarket and, given he is a strong stayer over the trip, you could argue he may well be suited better over a stiff 6f at Ascot, which as highlighted previously, tends to favour hold-up horses in big field handicaps on the straight course.

He was 3lb well-in under his penalty last time, where he got up to win by a short-head off 92, but 5lb higher than that does not look beyond him, especially in a race which should suit, and he looks well-treated to me compared to some of his main market rivals.