Coltrane fought bravely to get ahead of Caius Chorister and successfully defend his Longines Sagaro Stakes title at Ascot.
The Andrew Balding-trained gelding won the 2023 edition by four and three-quarter lengths, but with that success he had to do everything he could to fend off Sweet William and then Caius Chorister.
The seven-year-old sat behind Quickthorn, the early leader, but came into the lead with two furlongs to go as he battled with Sweet William.
Oisín Murphy made sure to stay ahead of Coltrane as he and Sweet William battled for the lead.
Coltrane (7-2) showed plenty of heart as Sweet Williams’ challenge faded in the final period, but Caius Chorister prevailed on the outside.
It looked as if the David Menuisier mare, who had clashed with Trueshan at the start, would take victory in the home straight, but Coltrane continued to win bravely by a margin.
Quddwah lays down the Queen Anne marker
Quddwah finished the race with success to maintain his unbeaten record and secure the Bet With Ascot Donation Scheme Paradise Stakes at Ascot.
Trained by Simon and Ed Crisford, the four-year-old was making only his third start against more experienced horses, but jockey William Buick guided his attack perfectly to the finish line, overtaking Docklands within the final 50 yards and winning by one.
He looked comfortable behind the leaders, with Docklands taking the first lap before Maljoom took the lead with five furlongs to go.
The leading pair charged forward and took home the finish from the two-eighths mark in what looked like a two-horse race as Docklands edged ahead of Maljoom, who didn’t have much room on the inside rail. However, Quddwah was just behind and continued to improve until he got to the top with the post in sight and took his third win in a row.
Ed Crisford said: “He is a very big horse who has been out for 11 months and we have done as much as we can at home, we have never taken him out. I thought he would get a bit tired, but there wasn’t much speed in it.” and he had a nice start to the race – it was a nice ride.
“He won well at Newmarket and we were due to run him in a listed race at the July meeting, but just before he got a little problem we had to lock him up. However, he had always shown that he was on the right path.” the up.
“He is still a very immature horse, as you saw when he went into the boxes. He’s only got two runs under his belt and he’s going to get a lot for it, he’s a big baby. I was really impressed with how he fought at the end.”
“We have put him in the Queen Anne and we will speak to Sheikh Ahmed and as an option there is the Diomed Stakes at Epsom along the way. He’s a horse with skills, learning his craft, and hopefully he’ll be fun to have.”
An enchanting performance awakens dreams of Royal Ascot
Enchanting Empress booked her ticket to Royal Ascot as owner Amo Racing won the Royal Ascot Two-Year-Old Trial EBF Conditions Stakes for the second year in a row.
Alice Haynes’ Maximum Impact signed up as the even favorite 12 months ago, but this time Dominic Ffrench Davis’ daughter of Sergei Prokofiev – the only filly in the field – was sent off with an 11/2 chance in the hands of David Egan placed.
She was a professional winner on her debut at Wolverhampton 21 days ago and showed plenty of heart to narrowly edge out the Murphy-trained Rock Hunter.
That victory came over five furlongs, but Ffrench Davis is now considering a move up to six furlongs for the Albany Stakes at the big meeting later in the summer.
He said: “I think she’s done enough to come back to Ascot, but I think she’s more of an Albany filly than a Queen Mary filly.”
“She will definitely get six and will probably get further as time goes on. It’s a quick pedigree but she was behind the bridle at Wolverhampton and today she was a little behind the bridle again.”
“She’s as tough as old boots and she answered when David asked her, so I think the Albany is probably her destination.”
Her rider agreed that Elegant Empress’s journey covers six furlongs and Egan added: “If she comes back to Ascot I would say six furlongs would be the more obvious journey.”