Andrew Newton
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes
15/07/2012
Run over 1m4f at Ascot racecourse this year’s Group One King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, which is a race widely regarded as Britain’s most prestigious open-age flat contest, will be run on Saturday July 21st July.
Last year we saw the recent Eclipse Stakes winner, NATHANIEL, land the spoils in impressive fashion and John Gosden’s 4 year-old bids to become the first back-to-back King George winner since Swain in 1998.
He had another of this Saturday’s main contenders, St Nicholas Abbey, in behind when winning the race 12 months ago, but now off level weights (Nathaniel received 12lbs last year) many will be siding with Aidan O’Brien’s 5 year-old turning the tables.
However, we’ve not seen a 5 year-old take this race since Daylami back in 1999 with all of the last 12 winners being aged either 3 or 4 years-old – a big stat for St Nicholas Abbey to overcome.
Nathaniel’s recent Eclipse win was, of course, over 2 furlongs shorter, but this step back up to 1m4f will not be a problem for the Gosden horse, while he’s actually 2-from-2 over this course and distance, while with just 8 career runs looks a horse still on the upgrade.
It’s by no means a two horse race with this year’s impressive Hardwicke Stakes winner, Sea Moon, also a strong contender and with the Stoute team having won the King George times in recent years then he hails from a yard that knows the time of day when it comes to winning this lucrative prize.
The form of that Royal Ascot win was also recently franked when the sixth home, Fiorente, who is also trained by Stoute, landed the Princess Of Wales’s Stakes at HQ last week, and he’s another that looks like he’s not finished improving just yet.
Looking back at that Hardwicke success some punters will feel that the second that day, DUNADEN (e/w), can turn the tables as he didn’t have the clearest of passages up the straight and would have certainly got a lot closer after flying when finally getting the gaps. He’s only finished out of the top three once in his last 15 starts and having already won the Melbourne Cup over further will not lack for stamina in the closing stages – he rates a very solid each-way option should he take his chance.
Of the rest, the Godolphin team are another yard that have done well in this race before – winning it five times – and they have their Dubai World Cup winner Monterosso engaged at this stage. Yes, he was well down the field in the Eclipse last time out, but a return to a track he’s run well at before and this 1m4f should see him in a better light if he runs.
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes Recent Winners
2011 – Nathaniel (11/2)
2010 – Harbinger (4/1)
2009 – Conduit (13/8 fav)
2008 – Duke of Marmalade (4/6 fav)
2007 – Dylan Thomas (5/4 fav)
2006 – Hurricane Run (5/6 fav)
2005 – Azamour (5/2 fav)
2004 – Doyen (11/10 fav)
2003 – Alamshar (13/2)
2002 – Golan (11/2)
King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes Trends
10/10 – Had won a Group 1 or 2 before
10/10 – Aged either 3 or 4 years-old
9/10 – Returned 11/2 or shorter in the betting
9/10 – Had 2 or more runs that season
9/10 – Placed in their last race
8/10 – Had won over 1m4f previously
7/10 – Had won a Group 1 before
7/10 – Run Ascot before
6/10 – Winning favourites
6/10 – Won their last race
5/10 – Ran at Royal Ascot last time out
5/10 – Had won at Ascot before
3/10 – Ridden by Johnny Murtagh
3/10 – Trained by Sir Michael Stoute
The average winning SP in the last 10 years is 3/1
Sir Michael Stoute won the race in 1981, 1983, 2002, 2009 & 2010
Saeed Bin Suroor won the race in 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999 & 2004
Remember you can watch this event live on your computer or mobile via At The Races. Need a UK IP? Click Here
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