Royal Ascot began with a bang on Tuesday, with a seven-race card featuring a trio of top-class Group 1 contests. The milers strutted their stuff in the Queen Anne and the St James’s Palace Stakes, whilst raw speed ruled in the King Charles III Stakes.
The St James’s Palace Stakes went the way most expected, as a majestic Field Of Gold stormed home for Juddmonte and the Gosdens. However, the other two Group 1 events produced less predictable results, as two trainers yet to strike at the top table savoured the sweet taste of success.
Hooray for Harry in Queen Anne Stakes
| Pos. | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | SP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Docklands | Harry Eustace | Mark Zahra | 14/1 |
| 2nd | Rosallion | Richard Hannon | Sean Levey | 5/2 |
| 3rd | Cairo | Alice Haynes | Silvestre De Sousa | 100/1 |
The opening event of the Queen Anne Stakes featured the 2024 winners of the English and Irish 2,000 Guineas, the 2025 Lockinge Stakes champ and the international star Carl Spackler. In such a star-studded field, the Harry Eustace-trained Docklands appeared to face an uphill battle.
Beaten in Listed and Group 3 company on his two most recent outings, and zero from five in Group 1 company, the mount of Mark Zahra didn’t look like the obvious winner on paper. However, the son of Massaat did have one significant factor in his favour. In six previous runs at Ascot, he had never finished outside the first three. Focusing on the Royal Meeting, two outings had produced a win in the 2023 Brittania Stakes and a gallant second to Charyn in the 2024 edition of this race.
Sent off at odds of 14/1, the market appeared to lend more weight to his recent efforts than his overall form at the track. However, Docklands showed once again that Ascot in June is the time to catch him.
In a race run at a relatively sedate gallop, his usual tardy start was of little consequence. Travelling ominously well at the three-furlong mark, Docklands stormed to the lead down the far side and repelled Rosallion’s late thrust to score by a nose – despite his rider losing his whip some way from home.
Aussie rider Zahra, who made his first Royal Ascot ride a winning one, joked in the aftermath:
“I was so scared about the whip rules I thought it would just be easier to throw it away in the final 200 metres”.
For trainer Harry Eustace, who arrived at Ascot with a solitary Group 3 success to his name, this result represented a landmark success. Understandably elated in the aftermath, the 36-year-old paid tribute to the ability and attitude of his stable star when stating:
“There were multiple Group 1 winners in there, the two Guineas winners from last year in Rosallion and Notable Speech, and we were probably the most exposed horse, but he loves the track, and that’s a big plus – and he tries bloody hard.”
Astonishing American Affair Grabs Gold For Goldie
| Pos. | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | SP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | American Affair | Jim Goldie | Paul Mulrennan | 11/1 |
| 2nd | Frost At Dawn | William Knight | Mickael Barzalona | 28/1 |
| 3rd | Regional | Edward Bethell | Callum Rodriguez | 9/1 |
Having acquired his training licence in 2021, 36-year-old Harry Eustace hasn’t waited too long to strike in Group 1 company. However, Jim Goldie may have begun to wonder if it would ever happen. Now 69 years old, the Lanarkshire-based handler first stepped out as a trainer in 1995.
Thirty years later, Goldie had struck six times apiece in Listed and Group 3 company, but never any higher. At Royal Ascot, his winning tally had yet to advance from zero. That all changed in the big five-furlong contest on the opening day, as one of the most spectacularly improved sprinters in training completed his ascent to the top.
As recently as August 2023, American Affair sat on a lowly rating of 67, having just tasted defeat in a Class 6 contest at Ayr. Kicking off 2024 on a mark of 70, the Washington DC gelding set about making rapid strides through the handicapping ranks – winning three times to climb to 97.
Defeat on his final outing at Ayr suggested he may have finally reached his ceiling. Fast forward to 2025, and the speedy grey has blown that theory out of the water. Bagging successive handicaps at Musselburgh and York, he came up short in the Group 2 Temple Stakes. However, he did well to finish as close as he did that day following a troubled passage.
Even accounting for his upward trajectory, American Affair looked to face a stiff task on his first outing in Group 1 company. A bumper field of 20 lined up for the five-furlong King’s Stand Stakes, including the first, second, and fourth from 2024, and the Breeders’ Cup hero Starlust.
American Affair proved too quick for them all. Asked for his effort at the two-furlong pole, he hit the front inside the final 110 yards and fended off Frost At Dawn for a famous success.
Reflecting on the spectacular result, Goldie highlighted the faith he had in his stable star when stating:
“I knew he was probably one of the fastest horses in the race, but it’s how you control that. We’ve come down a day early and got him relaxed, and it all fell into place. It means a lot.”
At a meeting so often dominated by the big guns, first-time Group 1 winners Eustace and Goldie struck refreshing blows for the smaller operators. How will events pan out over the remainder of the week?
