Kevin Blake

Gearing up for a top-class renewal of the King George

It is at this time of year that Flat racing really comes into its own. Each weekend throughout the summer seems to have a proper focus point in Britain, Ireland or France. There is so much to enjoy between the established stars of the sport clashing on the biggest stages, the three-year-olds emerging from their own age group to challenge their elders, and the stars of the future coming through the juvenile ranks. It really is a feast. 

The focus point of this coming weekend is unquestionably the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot. It has always been one of the highlights of the entire season and we have seen so many epic renewals of it down through the decades. It went through a slightly rough patch a few years ago when small fields and short-priced favourites led to some questioning whether it was losing importance in the wider scheme of the European Pattern, but more recent years have seen it roar back in no uncertain terms. 

Ascot couldn’t be accused of not getting anything but fully behind the race, raising the prize money to £1.5m for this year’s renewal which will make it the most valuable race ever run at Ascot. Some will debate whether adding more money to a race of such prestige and existing value will attract any more runners than it was always likely to attract, but top-class Flat racing is a fiercely international business and prize money cannot be allowed to fall behind rival jurisdictions as it is too easy for prize-money sensitive connections to change plans and go elsewhere. 

Whether or not the extra prize money is the reason, this year’s renewal of the race looks set to deliver on the billing of it being one of the most important races in Europe. Some will poke at what is set to be a small field in numerical terms, but per the most recent instalment of the World’s Best Racehorse Rankings, there are nine middle-distance turf horses on Planet Earth that are rated in excess of 120. At this stage, it looks very likely that three of them will be in the line-up for the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes. As well as that, it is also set to feature one of the highest-rated fillies on the planet in the shape of Kalpana. It goes without saying that bigger fields are great, but world-class quality is what matters most in races like this and that looks set to be delivered in no uncertain terms this year. 

The headline narrative is likely to be the rematch between the Aidan O’Brien-trained Jan Brueghel and the Francis-Henri Graffard-trained Calandagan. The pair served up a real spectacle when fighting out the finish of the Coronation Cup at Epsom in early-June, with the O’Brien colt coming out on top by half-a-length. There was more than a dash of irony in some of the post-race commentary that questioned the resolution of Calandagan in the finish, as the winner Jan Brueghel had similar stones thrown at him when he was beaten on his return to action at the Curragh in April. To my eye, there is absolutely nothing wrong with either of their resolutions. 

Jan Brueghel had to dig very deep on the trickiest of tracks at Epsom and fought like a tiger. Calandagan had been a little unfortunate in his career to bump into a series of world-class performers in circumstances that didn’t always play to his strengths in Group 1's. His trainer felt that he may have been a bit short of full fitness in the Coronation Cup on what was his return to Europe after running in Dubai and that was the way he shaped to my eye. Now that he got the Group 1 hoodoo off his back when bolting up in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud last time, Ascot is the perfect staging ground for the rematch between them. No excuses this time, let the best horse win. 

However, whatever happens between Jan Brueghel and Calandagan, the one that comes out on top of that tussle will be anything but guaranteed to win the race. Rebel’s Romance has been rated 120 or higher for three years now, but perhaps doesn’t get the credit he deserves as a world-class performer as his connections have chosen to campaign him internationally with wild success. He has accumulated over £10m in prize money, but such campaigns don’t tend to get much kudos from the domestic audience who often view such form quite snobbishly.

While some will point to Rebel’s Romance’s well-held third in this race last year as evidence of his ceiling at the very highest level, it is worth remembering that he came into that off the back of multiple trips abroad, with it being his first start in two months after running in Hong Kong. That couldn’t be considered an ideal preparation to face the toughest opposition of his career and his performance level might well have been hurt by it. 

Rebel’s Romance may now be a year older, but he has had much better preparation for this year’s race. He looked in incredibly good heart when winning the Hardwicke Stakes over this course and distance at Royal Ascot, exhibiting a tigerish attitude to pressure when seeing off the persistent challenge of Al Riffa. While he will rightly be a bigger price than his younger rivals, it would be ill-advised to rule him out of calculations. 

The head of the market promises to be completed by the Andrew Balding-trained Kalpana. The daughter of Study Of Man stamped herself as one of the most promising middle-distance fillies on the planet when rounding off last season with victory in the British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes at Ascot. Returned to training this season, she may have been beaten in both her starts to date, but she has lost very little in defeat. This is the first time she has tackled a mile-and-a-half this season and that promises to very much suit her. Any rain would be a help to her, but as long as the ground isn’t too firm, she looks set to run a very big race. 

The presence of Continuous in the entries raises hopes that he will be utilised as a pacemaker. Opinions and indeed regulations differ around the world on the subject of pacemakers, but I have made the point on endless occasions in this space that they help ensure a truer test for all, raising the possibility of the right result. Nothing frustrates more than unsatisfactory pace leading to a messy race on the biggest stage.

The coming days will reveal the final field and draw, but whatever way the cards fall on the table, the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes promises to be a showstopper.