Showcasing among 27 in Golden Jubilee Stakes
The Golden Jubilee Stakes is shaping up to be a truly international finale to this year’s Royal Ascot meeting.
The field, for which there are 27 at the six-day declaration stage, includes two runners from Hong Kong - Happy Zero and Joy And Fun - and one each from Australia, Alverta, and America, Kinsale King. There are also a possible four runners from France, including 2008 July Cup winner Marchand D'Or, which has not won the race for at least 50 years.
Choisir, trained by Paul Perry, was the last horse to win both the King Stand Stakes and the Golden Jubilee in 2003 and the two horses who are still in both races this year are Kingsgate Native, trained by Sir Michael Stoute, and Total Gallery for Stan Moore.
The current market leader is Showcasing, who will be attempting to provide trainer John Gosden with a second winner of the race after Malhub in 2001. The highlight of Showcasing’s two-year-old season was a victory in the Gimcrack Stakes at York last August and he made a promising start this year when a half-length second to Prime Defender in the Duke of York Stakes at the Dante meeting last month. After Showcasing worked on the July Course at Newmarket last week Goden said: “He worked well. He picked his lead horse up very quickly and has gone two lengths clear and then got bored and started looking around. He lacks a little concentration sometimes but I'm very happy with him.”
As well as those, Main Aim (third) and Starspangledbanner (fifth) are expected to run on Saturday.
Jeremy Noseda has decided on a change of strategy this year with Fleeting Spirit. The mare has finished third and second in the last two renewals of the King's Stand but has been left out of that race this week in favour of a crack at the Golden Jubilee. "She's a good, tough filly. In four Group Ones last year she either won or was second and I think that in at least a couple of those she was slightly unlucky," Noseda said. "You can virtually guarantee that she won't be out of the first three and I think she should have a very good chance."
The chances of the well-backed Hawkeyethenoo making the final field for the Wokingham Stakes are not looking good. He is one of 85 still left in the race but still needs 29 runners above him in the weights for the six-furlong handicap to drop out to guarantee a run.
Caracciola, who became the oldest horse to win at Royal Ascot as a 12-year-old last year, returns for another run in the meeting concluding contest, the Queen Alexandra Stakes.
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