Royal Ascot Shapes Up for Thursday Thriller
- By A.J. Ryder on June 15, 2011 19:00 GMT
It was a masterful day of race-riding at Royal Ascot on Wednesday but it was certainly not without controversy as Frankie Dettori's shock victory in the day's feature contest saw him simultaneously pip 1.3 favourite So You Think (High Chapparal) to Prince of Wales glory, but pick up a nine day ban in the process. Scoring a massive Group 1 victory for the blue team, Dettori produced an epic performance aboard Rewilding (Tiger Hill) - collaring the Aussie shipper on the line.
Rewilding is no stranger to quality performances in Group 1 contests having opened his top-class account with a victory in the Dubai Sheema Classic during this year's Meydan meet.
There is a number of graded contests on Thursday's card at Ascot and there is an awful lot to like about the feature race – the Group 1 Gold Cup, which is part of the newly-formed British Champions' Series. Fame and Glory (Montjeu) is taking most of the plaudits in the build-up to the contest and is expected to go off as the betting favourite once things start to heat up on Thursday afternoon.
It's a tougher test than many of the other Group 1 contests have looked to be at the outset – with a number of them boasting high-profile favourites going off at especially short prices. This hasn't always guaranteed victory, as So You Think found out on Wednesday.
Duncan (Dalakhani), Opinion Poll (Halling) and tricky handicapper The Betchworth Kid (Tobougg) step up to take a crack at the well-fancied favourite.
The Group 2 Norfolk Stakes get the card started and it's attracted a tough field of 21 with plenty of contenders putting their undefeated records on the line. Everyday Dave (Weather Warning) lines up for American conditioner Wesley Ward. Pyman's Theory (Exceed and Excel) looks especially sharp following a recent listed score but his four-race record indicates he might be ripe for a bounce in this one.
Punters will also find the Group 2 Ribblesdale Stakes for fillies with a number of talented contenders set to contest this 1m4f contest. A number of top sires are represented in this one with fillies by Dansili, Galileo, Dynaformer, Iffraaj, Sadler's Wells and Danehill Dancer all in the mix for this one.
In addition to a pair of handicaps, the Tercentenary Stakes is a Group 3 contest that should offer up plenty of intrigue as it unfolds over 1m2f.
