The prospect of June’s racing will already have fans of the flat salivating. First, the Derby Festival takes centre stage at Epsom Downs in Surrey, with the Oaks and the Derby itself headlining the two-day meeting on Friday 3 and Saturday 4 June, before Royal Ascot gets underway 10 days later — running for five days between 14-18 June.
The Royal meeting plays host to eight Group 1 contests, the biggest of which is the Ascot Gold Cup. The best stayers in the sport will head to Berkshire for the marathon trip of two miles and four furlongs, and the racing odds are beginning to shape up as we edge ever closer to the event.
So, let’s take a look at a few of the horses currently leading the way in the Ascot Gold Cup ante-post market…
Trueshan
Trueshan is the outright favourite in the Gold Cup’s ante-post market and jockey Hollie Doyle will be hoping that she can make history in the lengthy two-mile, four-furlong race — becoming the first female winner of the Ascot highlight in the same year Rachael Blackmore set the same feat in the Cheltenham Gold Cup.
She has a great chance of doing just that in the saddle of the Alan King-trained horse. The bay gelding might be six years old, but the 2021 Long Distance Cup winner has shown no signs of letting up — winning the Listed Further Flight Stakes at Nottingham on his seasonal reappearance.
Given Trueshan’s age, he’ll likely head straight to Ascot after that victory in early April, but he is still going to take all the beating in the Gold Cup.
Kyprios
Raced sparingly by Aidan O’Brien, Kyprios has appeared just twice in both his two- and three-year-old seasons — producing inconsistent results for the Ballydoyle trainer as well, with two wins from four races under rules.
The four-year-old is a bit hot-headed, as shown when he was forced to withdraw from the Group 2 Queen’s Vase at the 2021 renewal of Royal Ascot after becoming upset in the stalls. But he looked a lot calmer as he beat his full sister Search For A Song in a Listed race at Navan last month.
He’ll reappear for the Group 3 Saval Beg Levmoss Stakes at Leopardstown later this month, and a second victory of the season would set Kyprios up nicely for a crack at the Ascot Gold Cup.
Stradivarius
At this stage, we’re not sure if the legendary Stradivarius will ever stop racing! Amazingly, this will be the John & Thady Gosden-trained eight-year-old’s seventh season and the horse’s connections will be desperate for a record-equalling fourth Gold Cup in what will likely be his last attempt.
While he was fourth, over seven lengths behind Subjectivist in last year’s renewal, Stradivarius did impress a few times over the course of the season — winning the Group 3 Sagaro Stakes at Ascot last April, the Group 2 Lonsdale Cup at York in August and the Group 2 Doncaster Cup in September.
We’ll find out how he was wintered at Clarehaven Stables when he makes his reappearance in the Yorkshire Cup. A victory in the Group 2 race will undoubtedly get hopes raised, but a defeat could raise serious question marks ahead of the Gold Cup.
