Bow Echo bravely held off Gstaad by a short head in a thrilling finish to the St James's Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot, maintaining his unbeaten record. The 2,000 Guineas winner fought hard for victory in the feature race, with the Sussex Stakes at Glorious Goodwood likely to be his next target.
A Hard-Fought Victory
Five races and two Group Ones into his career, Bow Echo remains unbeaten, though this victory was far from easy. He had only a short-head to spare over Gstaad at the line, having briefly looked likely to canter to victory passing the two-pole. It was enough to secure a first Royal Ascot Group One for both trainer George Boughey and his 20-year-old rider, Billy Loughnane, whose best season yet keeps getting better.
On the face of it, this was a slightly scrambled success, given Bow Echo's winning margin of nearly three lengths over Gstaad in the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket last month. However, Ascot is a very different track with a sterner climb to the finish, and Bow Echo is hardly the first colt to find that it has different demands.
Early Interference
The favourite was involved in some early scrimmaging as the half-dozen runners looked for a good early position. This interference saw Ryan Moore, Gstaad's jockey, receive a three-day suspension from the stewards for careless riding. As a result, Bow Echo can be forgiven for needing the line at the other end of the race, against a rival who enjoyed a perfect, ground-saving trip up the rail.
"The first furlong was crucial and I got squeezed out early," Loughnane said. "There were five of us in a line and I slightly lost my position and Bow Echo got lit up. It was then a case of trying to manage things. The Amo horse [Power Blue] came back into our lap and it meant I had to move probably sooner than ideal, but his guts got him through. He's a very determined horse with a great turn of foot and fantastic ability."
Future Plans
Goodwood, where Bow Echo is likely to head next for the Group One Sussex Stakes in late July, is a different challenge again, but this time a speedier track that should play to his strengths. He is favourite at around 7-4 to extend his streak to six if he lines up for what would be his first race against all-aged competition.
"I think that was the first time Bow Echo got into a proper battle," Boughey said. "It was quite a scrap early doors [but] I think we'll see a better horse now that he's been in a scrap like that. He has done everything we've hoped. It's fine margins in this game and luckily he was on the right side of it."
Other Highlights
Bow Echo and Gstaad's memorable duel in the feature event was matched for excitement by a three-way conclusion to the King Charles III Stakes, as Mission Central edged out Rayevka by a head with the Australian-trained favourite, Overpass, three-quarters of a length away in third.
Mission Central, something of a rarity as an Aidan O'Brien-trained sprinter, was off the pace early but came with a powerful run towards the stands' side to grab victory in the final strides. Having seen off one of the southern hemisphere's top sprinters at Ascot, Mission Central may now be tasked with repeating the trick on Australian soil in the Everest, the world's richest turf race, in October.
"We have a slot in the Everest," Tom Magnier, from the Coolmore syndicate that owns Mission Central, said. "It's a great race and one we'd love to win. We will see how the horse pulls up, but it would definitely be a race that you could put on the radar for him."
Queen Anne Stakes Shock
The first day crowd was stunned into near-silence by the opening race of the meeting, as Ten Bob Tony, at 50-1, accelerated from last to first in the closing stages of the Group One Queen Anne Stakes. Ed Walker's gelding was the longest-priced winner of the race for 76 years.
"It is just an amazing story," Walker said. "Ten Bob Tony won a Group Three [at Epsom] 10 days ago and then turned up here and did that. Kieran [Shoemark] gave him an absolute peach of a ride [and] the miracle happened. We'd agreed we'd sit last and try to pass as many as possible."
Royal Hopes Dashed
Hopes for a winner in the royal colours in the Ascot Stakes Handicap proved to be wildly optimistic as Reaching High, who was the subject of a significant gamble to start favourite at just 13-8, trailed home a long last behind Joseph O'Brien's Kizlyar in the two-and-a-half mile contest. The King and Queen's search for a first winner at the meeting since Desert Hero three years ago will now move on to their colt Point Of Law, an 8-1 shot for the Queen's Vase at 3.05 on Wednesday.
Wednesday's Tip: Daryz to Dazzle
The betting suggests that the Prince of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot on Wednesday is close to a head-to-head between Ombudsman, last year's winner, and Daryz, who took the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in October, but both Almaqam and Minnie Hauk, the Arc runner-up, have form that puts them in the mix. Daryz (4.20), though, is both the top-rated runner according to official figures and Timeform, and the only horse in the field with fewer than 10 runs. He has also dropped back from the Arc trip to make short work of Group One on his two starts this season, over ten-and-a-half and then an extended nine furlongs at Longchamp. Good-to-firm ground is an unknown for Francis Henri-Graffard's colt, but there will be plenty of water going on overnight. While he was last of six on his only previous trip outside France for last year's International at York, that was just the fourth start of his career and he looks much more the finished article this season.
Other Selections
Royal Ascot 2.30 Senorita Bonita, who cost a shade under £1m at the breeze-ups in the spring, made a successful racecourse debut at Nottingham despite finding trouble in running. Her turn of foot and attitude should be potent weapons here.
Royal Ascot 3.05 Andrew Balding's Galiyan improved for a step up in trip and posted a strong time when breaking his duck at Chester in May, promising to be better still over an extra two furlongs.
Royal Ascot 3.40 The lightly-raced Catalina Delcarpio ran in the 12-furlong Ribblesdale here last year but has shown improved form dropped back in trip this season. A strongly-run race over this stiff mile could be ideal.
Royal Ascot 5.00 A closer from a high draw tends to be the percentage call in the Royal Hunt Cup, and Erzindjan is an ideal fit. The eight-year-old is not long with the excellent TJ Kent stable and was value for more than the official margin at Newmarket last time. With Ryan Moore booked to ride, he looks a big price at around 14-1 from stall 24.
Royal Ascot 5.35 Miss Nightfall was better than the bare result at Yarmouth last time and could find this set up for her fast-finishing style.
Royal Ascot 6.10 Robson de Aguiar's Controlla was a big outsider on debut but the clock suggests her run into second was no fluke.
