This Saturday will see the Japanese-bred star, Continuous, aiming to cap off an impressive Royal Ascot for Aidan O’Brien’s dependable older horses. Continuous, last year’s St Leger champion, will mark his potential return towards the October’s prestigious Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe by participating in the Group Two Hardwicke Stakes.
Continuous possesses the highest rating for the concluding day of Royal Ascot, carrying an official tally of 120. Regardless of his Group One credentials, Continuous will be competing with equal weights against eight rivals in a one and a half mile race that his coach has already won four times.
Throughout this week, O’Brien has performed impressively with both young and three-year-old participants, with two of his three mature runners finding victory – Auguste Rodin at the Prince of Wales’s Stakes, and Kyprios at the Gold Cup. Hans Andersen, the third runner, played a supporting role for Auguste Rodin as a deep underdog and pacemaker.
Despite a lower profile, Continuous is expected to significantly influence the forthcoming season’s middle-distance highlights. After being the second-best in the previous year’s King Edward, he followed on to secure the Voltigeur at York before stylishly lifting the Leger. Sadly, he couldn’t participate in the Japan Cup in November due to a fifth-place finish in the Arc.
The well-loved son of Heart’s Cry has been carefully nurtured by O’Brien this season, with the trainer optimistic of his further potential. O’Brien admits that although the journey so far has been challenging, Continuous has shown potential to win, and he’s sure to perform better in future races.
Competing against Continuous is a seldom-seen mid-distance US contender, Missed The Cut, trained by renowned American trainer John Sadler. Middle Earth, who finished behind Continuous in the Leger, has warmed up this season with a win despite the Gosden team’s underperformance.
O’Brien, who achieved over 400 Group One wins earlier this week, will surprisingly not participate in the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes, the main attraction for the Saturday.
Despite lacking an Irish contender in the highly profitable sprint, those privy to last month’s Greenlands Stakes event at the Curragh will be keeping a sharp eye on Mitbaahy. In a typical bold move, Jamie Spencer propelled the mount trained by Charlie Hills to dominate Regional, who narrowly lost in the Group One sprint on Tuesday. Last year, Khaadem, a veteran priced at 80-1, carried the Mitbaahy team to victory in this race. This time, he has another shot under the guidance of Oisín Murphy.
In the Jersey Stakes, Ballydoyle is represented by three entries, however, it’s quite clear who the leading contender is. River Tiber, victor of last year’s Coventry, made a comeback in last month’s Irish Guineas, finishing third to fellow stable mates Rosallion and Haatem. Haatem, who finished a length ahead of River Tiber, will have to concede 3lbs, but a seven-furlong return could favour the Ballydoyle entry.
As the curtain comes down on another year at Ascot, familiar names will participate in the Queen Alexandra Stakes, the longest flat race. Dawn Rising, last year’s champion, returns to challenge the marathon race once again, sans Ryan Moore, who is engaged in Queenstown. The highest rated competitor, Trueshan, seems to be at the mercy of the weather, requiring rainfall to soften the ground for his participation.
France’s pre-eminent jockey, Maxime Guyon, pairs with Charles Byrnes’s stayer Run For Oscar for the first time in the final race. The horse, winner of the 2022 Cesarewitch, experienced an untimely obstruction in last year’s race but prepped for the event with a run at the Curragh last month.
Down Royal will host this Saturday’s standout race, the €100,000 Boylesports Ulster Derby, where O’Brien has a good chance of winning for the third time in four years with two entrants, Psalm and Ocean Of Dreams. It remains uncertain whether they will perform at par with last year’s winner Tower Of London. Perhaps this contest could see local trainer Andy Oliver enjoy a noteworthy win. With two entrants of his own, and one, Gibbs Island, being the sibling of Ebor third-place finisher Live Your Dream, a step up to a mile-and-a-half could be what the horse needs.
The Martin Molony Stakes, a Listed event, takes place in Limerick and presents an opportunity for London City, the towering young horse, to compete against older, more seasoned horses. This grey colt, sired by Justify and Winter, is still in the running for the Irish Derby, and his latest triumph in York provides ample evidence that he may continue to rise. Notably, he receives a significant advantage of a stone from experienced stayer Harbour Wind, one of Dermot Weld’s charges, who’s kick-starting this season following an impressive runner-up performance at Longchamp during the Arc weekend the previous fall.