Royal Ascot Trials Day is shaping up to be an exciting curtain raiser to our 2026 Flat season with plenty of equine stars in contention.
Entries for the Group 3 Longines Sagaro Stakes are particularly strong, headlined by the popular and ultra-consistent stayer Sweet William alongside, Caballo De Mar, a Group 1 winner last year with the promise of more to come.
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The Group 3 Commonwealth Cup Trial looks to have real quality in it with Wise Approach, Brussels and Coppull among the possible runners. They finished in that order as the 1-2-3 in the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes in September and all could take high-rank among the sprinting division this summer.
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Elsewhere on the card, The Memberships At Ascot Paradise Stakes is always a race worth following with Docklands finishing second in it last year before winning the Queen Anne Stakes. This year, former Royal Ascot winners Holloway Boy and Rashabar are on track to get their season underway in the £60,000 Listed contest.
The opening Ascot Shop Royal Ascot Two-Year-Old Trial EBF Conditions Stakes can also throw up leading contenders for the Royal Meeting and leading trainers Ralph Beckett, Karl Burke and Richard Hannon all have potential runners.
Trials Day Produced Two Royal Ascot Winners Last Year
Royal Ascot Trials Day last year produced two subsequent winners at the Royal Meeting and this year looks similarly promising with two quality Group 3 races among four key trials for racing here in June.
The opening race, the Ascot Shop Royal Ascot Two-Year-Old Trial EBF Conditions Stakes at 2.00pm, was won last year by Wise Approach who runs later on the card. This year’s contest has attracted the 1-2 from the first two-year-old race of the season, the Brocklesby Stakes at Doncaster. A Bear Affair beat Dance A Jig that day though now has to carry three pounds more than that rival – the latter-named also looked very green on the day and will have learnt plenty. Adaay Of Scarlet was a debut winner by over four lengths at Newmarket whilst Crusherman had a decent introduction at Newbury two weeks ago.
The first Group 3 on the card is the Longines Sagaro Stakes at 2.35pm which has attracted its biggest field since it was run at Newcastle in the COVID year of 2020 and the most runners at Ascot since 2016. The field of nine is headed by Sweet William, an ever-present in these staying contests and he rarely runs a bad race whilst Caballo De Mar could still be on the up after a Group 1 success at Longchamp in October. Tabletalk and Tarriance were second and third in a Group 2 in Saudi Arabia in February and reoppose here.
Commonwealth Cup Trial Draws Solid Group
The race of the day looks like being the Group 3 Commonwealth Cup Trial Stakes at 3.10pm, featuring the 1-2-3 from the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes in September. Wise Approach beat Brussels and Coppull that day and the Godolphin colt was also second in the Norfolk Stakes in June. He brings the strongest form although Ardisia was second ahead of Division in fifth in the inaugural QIPCO British Champions Day Two-Year-Old Conditions Stakes here in October, a race that is working out well. Seven of the eight runners were entered in the Commonwealth Cup earlier this week, with Ardisia ineligible due to being a gelding.
Last year, the Listed Memberships At Ascot Paradise Stakes (3.45pm) produced the winner of the Queen Anne Stakes, Docklands. This year his trainer Harry Eustace sends out La Botte who has been well-fancied for big handicaps including at last year’s Royal Meeting. Jonquil just escapes a penalty for his Group 2 win in August and has long shown plenty of potential, whilst Remmooz remains a tad unexposed after just six starts. Rashabar and Holloway Boy both caused huge shocks at the Royal Meeting in recent years and the latter in particular rarely runs a bad race here.
Looking at the rest of the card, the Naas Racecourse Handicap (4.20pm) over five furlongs features plenty of in-form sprinters including Artagnan and Combustion. Ryan Moore on Pixie Diva will ride against his son Toby on Rage Of Thunder, trained by Ryan’s father Gary and brother Josh. The Darley British EBF Fillies’ Novice Stakes (4.55pm) can throw up a promising type and the likes of Juddmonte and Cheveley Park have declared runners here – the latter-named’s So Regal is a full-brother to Chancellor who runs in the Paradise Stakes. We close with the Ascot Racecourse Supports Debra Manny Mercer Apprentice Handicap (5.30pm), which was won last year by subsequent Royal Hunt Cup hero My Cloud so the form will be worth following.
