Royal Ascot Trials Day: Outsiders Make Their Mark
- Turf GMD
- Apr 30
- 2 min read
Royal Ascot trials day at Ascot delivered thrilling action with three key prep races. Hong Kong owner Marc Chan struck first, as his previously all-weather-only runner and son of Saxon Warrior, #8 SARDINIAN WARRIOR (Kieran Shoemark), made a successful switch to turf on his first attempt. He immediately held off the strong favorite, #4 DOCKLANDS (Richard Kingscote), to win the one-mile Paradise Stakes (Listed race), directly securing his entry into the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes. The in-form jockey-trainer partnership of Shoemark and Gosden has been enjoying increasing success recently, further bolstering the prospects of their leading contender, FIELD OF GOLD, in Saturday's Betfred 2000 Guineas.
Sardinian Warrior wins Queen Anne's qualifier
(Video: At The Races)
The feature race of the day, and a qualifying race for the Ascot Gold Cup, the Group 3 Sagaro Stakes over 2 miles (3209 metres) worth £80,000, produced an even more surprising result. The six-year-old #2 YASHIN (Callum Shepherd), who had been on a long 286-day break and had finished unplaced in his last four starts, emerged as a shock winner, unexpectedly defeating #1 COLTRANE (ridden by Oisin Murphy) near the finish line, ending that horse's bid for a third consecutive victory in the race.
Yashin denies Coltrane's Sagaro hat-trick
(Video: At The Races)
The Commonwealth Cup trial, the Group 3 Pavilion Stakes for three-year-old sprinters over 6 furlongs (1207 metres) worth £80,000, saw #3 BIG MOJO (Tom Marquand), who had frequently raced overseas last season, narrowly prevailled despite drifting across the track and interfering with #1 AIN'T NOBODY (Tom Eaves). However, #7 DIABLO ROJO (David Egan), owned by Kia Joorabchian's AMO Racing, showed significant promise, finishing second.
Big Mojo secures Commonwealth Cup entry
(Video: At The Races)
In the opening race, a Class 5 contest for two-year-old debutants over 5 furlongs (1005 meters), #14 WISE APPROACH (William Buick), a half-brother to Perfect Power, found himself heavily boxed in but managed to break through in time to secure a debut victory, justifying his high yearling price of 1,000,000 guineas for the Godolphin stable. On the other side, Coolmore recently had a promising debut winner in CHARLES DARWIN (see link elsewhere). If these two colts were to meet during the Royal Ascot meeting, it would undoubtedly be a thrilling contest.
Wise Approach shows promise on debut
(Video: At The Races)
(30/4/2025)
Comments