That’s your lot for Champions Day for another year. Aidan O’Brien started the day as the big possible headline maker but in the end he was upstaged by Cracksman, a simply brilliant winner of the Champion Stakes who will be even better over longer. The anticipation of the Cracksman v Enable match-up next year, in the King George at Ascot or even the Arc at Longchamp, will keep racing fans warm all winter. Watch this space.
Balmoral Handicap (4.30) result
1 Lord Glitters (D Tudhope) 3-1 Fav
2 Gm Hopkins (R Havlin) 20-1
3 Dark Red (F Norton) 25-1
4 Accidental Agent (Charles Bishop) 12-1
20 ran
Updated
Cracksman a brilliant winner of Champion Stakes
Cracksman lived up to the hype with a stunning display in the Qipco Champion Stakes at Ascot. Plenty was written and said about connections deciding to skip the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and shunning a clash with John Gosden-trained stablemate Enable, who eventually won in great style.
And while the decision to drop back to 10 furlongs did not look sure to suit the son of Frankel, he absolutely blitzed a classy field. Frankel won the race himself in 2010, but even he did not win by seven lengths, as the 13-8 favourite stamped his authority on the contest from some way out in the hands of Frankie Dettori.
Taking up the running just before the home straight, Dettori knew there were no stamina issues and he poured it on, with Poet’s Word and Highland Reel giving game chase.
Truthfully, they were not in the same league on the day, although third-placed Highland Reel’s effort in conditions he would not have appreciated can be marked up, given Ryan Moore took the longer route under the trees searching for better ground. The race was all about Cracksman, though, and he is already 4-1 with Paddy Power for next year’s Arc.
Gosden said: “He’s a very talented horse, Frankie rode him positively and beautifully in the straight. We said to come wide and he has done it well. You can see why I didn’t want him to run [in the Arc] - I don’t know, him and Enable would be fun. There’s not much between them, is there?
“It’s great for Frankel to have a Group One winner in Europe, he’s got that wonderful Japanese filly but he’s had a proper Group One here in a race he won himself.” PA
Updated
Champion Stakes (3.50) result
1 Cracksman (L Dettori) 13-8 Fav
2 Poet’s Word (Andrea Atzeni) 7-1
3 Highland Reel (R L Moore) 17-2
10 ran
Updated
Champion Stakes (3.50)
There’s going to be a slight delay as Barney Roy had the wrong saddlecloth number on ... and they’re off ... Success Days takes an early lead ... Highland Reel is second and is taken very wide by Ryan Moore ... Maverick Wave and Cracksman are prominent ... Cracksman comes to the front and kicks clear ... He’s staying on well for a superb victory. That looked a championship performance.
Updated
Persuasive has Dettori flying high
Persuasive made sure Frankie Dettori was on the scoresheet on British Champions Day at Ascot as she ran out an impressive winner of the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes. Without a prior win this season, the four-year-old filly was sent off an 8-1 chance to beat the boys and quickened up smartly to win in style.
Ribchester, the leading miler in Europe this season, tried to control the race with two furlongs to run, but was there to be shot at in the closing stages. When Dettori got in the clear on John Gosden’s grey she found a change of gear that Ribchester could not live with, eventually scoring by an eased-down length. Churchill was third for Aidan O’Brien, while Nathra, a stablemate of the winner, was fourth.
Gosden said: “He was saving and saving, trying to keep her together. He went for a run on the inside and got blocked, so had to take her back and swing out. She’d have been an unlucky loser. When she got out she flew down the middle of the track and Nathra ran a blinder in fourth, they are both off to stud now to be mothers but they’ve gone out in proper style.”
Dettori, who performed his trademark flying dismount in the winner’s enclosure, said: “She travelled so well, the ground is so key to her. She has an exceptional turn of foot and put the race to bed very quickly. This very race was my first Group One in 1990 [with Markofdistinction].” PA
Champion Stakes (3.50) preview
Another stellar year for John Gosden and Frankie Dettori should be capped off with victory in the feature race on British Champions Day, to be provided by Cracksman (3.50). This robust-looking son of Frankel was on the edge of becoming disappointing in the first half of the year, when beaten by unglamorous rivals in both the Derby and the Irish Derby, but things look rosier now. The turnaround began when he ran away with the Voltigeur, while his French win last month proved he can cope with soft. He has grown up, grown into his frame and looks a strong proposition from a handy draw in stall four. Barney Roy sets a high standard, though his ability seem to have plateaued in his last three runs. Highland Reel might find this ground on the soft side.
Latest betting: 2-1 Cracksman, 5-1 Barney Roy, Brametot, 7-1 Poet’s Word, 9-1 Cliffs Of Moher, 14-1 Highland Reel, 20-1 Recoletos, 40-1 Desert Encounter.
Updated
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (3.15) result
1 Persuasive (L Dettori) 8-1
2 Ribchester (W Buick) 2-1 Fav
3 Churchill (R L Moore) 9-2
15 ran
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (3.15)
And they’re off ... Ribchester and Toscannini away well ... Sir John Lavery prominent ... Ribchester keen in the early stages ... Breton Rock the back marker ... Toscannini leads with Lancaster Bomber very prominent ... Ribchester just in the front ... Lihgtning Spear challenges ... Persuasive finishes best of all to run out a winner for Frankie Dettori. Ribchester was second.
Updated
O'Brien equals Group-One race record
Aidan O’Brien drew level with the late Bobby Frankel’s world record of 25 Group/Grade One wins in a year when Hydrangea landed the Qipco British Champion Fillies And Mares Stakes at Ascot. The Galileo filly had beaten dual 1,000 Guineas winner Winter twice already this campaign, but was racing over a mile and a half for the first time.
Ryan Moore made a bid for home early, obviously in no doubt about her ability to stay the distance, but the favourite Bateel cruised up alongside her. When asked to go and win the race, though, Bateel simply could not get past Hydrangea and in the final 100 yards the 4-1 shot began to pull away again.
Hydrangea eventually won by two lengths, with Coronet back in third. On equalling the record, O’Brien said: “It’s incredible for everyone, they all put in so much hard work, day in day out. We’re a small link in a big chain and I’m delighted for everyone - it’s a magic, special day. The chain is so long and we’re so glad to be a little link in it.”
He added of the winner: “She’s by Galileo and they will not stop, their will to win is incredible. She pulled out more and it was Ryan’s idea to run her as he thought there was a chance she’d get the trip. We weren’t sure, but she did.” PA
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (3.15) preview
From the Andrew Balding stable that shocked Ribchester in the Sussex, Beat The Bank seems on a strong upward curve and odds of 11-2 underplay his chance. A dirty scope after the Jersey Stakes explains the only blip on his record and he is proven on soft. Here Comes When and Zonderland may also outrun their odds.
Latest betting: 9-4 Ribchester, 4-1 Churchill, 9-2 Beat The Bank, 7-1 Al Wukair, 16-1 Thunder Snow, 20-1 Persuasive, 22-1 Here Comes When, 40-1 Lightning Spear.
Updated
Champions Filies & Mares Stakes (2.40 result
1 Hydrangea (R L Moore) 4-1
2 Bateel (P C Boudot) 7-4 Fav
3 Coronet (O Peslier) 11-2
10 ran
Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes (2.40)
And they’re off ... Alyssa and The Juliet Rose are the early leaders with Journey handy ... Hydrangea is caught out wide in the early stages ... Not much change in the order with Left Hand getting closer ... Journey travels well ... Bateel is waited with ... Hydrangea comes through but Bateel travels to challenge ... Hydrangea gets the trip well and goes on to win with Bateel second.
Updated
Breeze shocks big guns to win Champions Sprint
Librisa Breeze downed all the big names to win the British Champions Sprint at Ascot. With Harry Angel sent off favourite to follow up his scintillating Haydock win and Commonwealth Cup winner Caravaggio plus Quiet Reflection and The Tin Man all in the line-up, there was no hiding place. However, they were all left in the wake of Dean Ivory’s speedy grey, who survived a bump a furlong out to win impressively.
Adam Kirby adopted more patient tactics on Harry Angel, but he kicked clear with two furlongs to run. But despite coping with heavy ground at Haydock, Harry Angel was soon getting tired and the cavalry began charging. Tasleet attacked on the far side, with Librisa Breeze in the middle of the track as Caravaggio also began to stay on.
Owned by Tony Bloom, who is the chairman of Brighton & Hove Albion and won the Cesarewiitch last week with Withhold, Librisa Breeze obliged at 10-1 under Robert Winston, beating Tasleet by a length and a quarter. Caravaggio was third.
Winston told ITV Racing: “It means a hell of a lot - my career was finished, only for this horse, and that’s being honest. I was packing up last year, I gave my notice to Dean, but this horse and Mr Bloom have kept me going. Dean is a great man to ride for, he has great staff and brilliant owners, including Mr Bloom.”
He added of the winner: “He’d get a mile plus, but has so much natural speed and is so genuine. I know I have been criticised a couple of times this year when he should have won, but that’s the way you have to ride him. It doesn’t really matter now, he’s won the big one this year and this was the plan.” PA
Updated
Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes (2.40) preview
Since moving to France, Bateel has improved significantly and it is hard to see how Journey can turn around their form from Chantilly last month.
Latest betting: 9-4 Bateel, 4-1 Journey, 6-1 Hydrangea, 13-2 Coronet, 14-1 Horseplay, 20-1 The Juliet Rose, Alyssa, 33-1 bar.
Updated
Champions Sprint (2.00) result
1 Librisa Breeze (R Winston) 10-1
2 Tasleet (Jim Crowley) 10-1
3 Caravaggio (R L Moore) 9-2
12 ran
Also: 5-4 Fav Harry Angel 4th
Non Runner: 7
Champions Spint (2.00)
And they’re off ... Donjuan Troumphant leads ... with Harry Angel close ... Tasleet comes with a late run and so does Librisa Breeze, who gets up close home, to win.
Updated
Officials firm in belief that right to run Champions Day on outer course
Big Orange, the Gold Cup winner, was beaten before the home turn in the Long Distance Cup on ground that he hates, and finished so far behind the winner, Order Of St George, that it is hard to believe a switch to the better ground on the track’s inner course would have made a great deal of difference.
The decision to stick to the outer course, and the appearance of “heavy” in the going description on Champions Day for the first time, has prompted some to wonder why the course did not take up the option of switching some or all of the Group One events to the inside course.
The answer, according to a track official, it that there is a lot more to it than simply taking a GoingStick reading on both tracks when the conditions are soft and opting for the one that is faster (which would be, in almost every case, the inner course, which does not get watered over the summer).
For one thing, it would be a breach of the rules after the 48-hour stage on Thursday morning, and for another, it would annoy as many owners and trainers as it would please. Champions Day is, for better or worse, an autumn race day and everyone needs to campaign and enter their horses on that basis. For every Big Orange, there will be a Bateel, whose chance of adding another Group One to her win in the Prix Vermeille is enhanced by the cut in the ground.
If it were unraceable, or close to it, on the outer course and soft on the inner, that would be different. But the contingency is not there - and neither is a rule – which would allow Ascot to race on good ground on the inner track instead of soft on the outer, above all when the forecast is changing by the hour.
Updated
Order Of St George battles for Long Distance Cup victory
Order Of St George pulled off an unlikely victory to get up close home in the Qipco Long Distance Cup at Ascot. Aidan O’Brien’s stayer was sent off the 4-5 market leader, but with two furlongs to run he looked beaten back in fourth, hitting a big price on the exchanges as Torcedor kicked clear.
Gold Cup hero Big Orange was a spent force a long way out on the testing ground and it was Mount Moriah who led them into the straight, with Torcedor on his shoulder. When Colm O’Donoghue asked the Jessica Harrington-trained Torcedor for maximum effort he looked sure to collect, but in the final 100 yards he was treading water as Ryan Moore got a late lunge out of Order Of St George. John Gosden’s Goodwood Cup winner Stradivarius stayed on for third under Frankie Dettori.
Moore told ITV Racing: “I was very happy the whole way round and thought I had the first two covered, but they picked up very well and it didn’t look likely for a long time. But as they came back to him he began to get motivated and at the line he’s won well. He’s an unbelievably good horse, he ran a very good race in the Arc 20 days ago, he’s come here at the end of a long, hard year and looked magnificent. He’s a pleasure to deal with and we’re very lucky to have him.”
O’Brien said of his five-year-old, who was fourth to Enable in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe: “He is tough and hardy and Ryan gave him a great ride. He never stops. In every race he has ever run in, he is always finishing.
“We saw him in the Gold Cup. He was finishing. Sometimes the line comes too quick, but he doesn’t stop. He has had a busy time. Obviously we are delighted with him. That is him for this year, I imagine.”
Harrington said: “He’s run a real cracker, I’m absolutely thrilled. He’s been beaten by a very good horse, it’s as simple as that. He put it up to him and he’s come on again since the summer and I’ve only had him a year, not even a year in training. I’m still learning [about him] and he’ll be back next year.”
Gosden said: “He’s run a blinder. It’s not his favourite ground, he has this ability to quicken and you can’t really quicken in that. It was a tremendous race, Order Of St George brings Arc form in here. Jessie’s horse looked like he’d got it. We’re thrilled with him and he’s a better horse on good ground. He stays in training and we look forward to races like the Ascot Gold Cup.” PA
Updated
There was some disquiet about Cap’n being allowed to run in the opening race, Timeform stating that “he had no business” to be running in a race of Group Two quality first time out. His finishing position won’t have dissuaded them.
On the basis of calculations from his finishing time, Cap'n finished 211 lengths behind 12th horse Stars Over The Sea. #ChampionsDay
— Will Hayler (@HaylerWill) October 21, 2017
This was a nice little feature on the trip the horses make from arriving in theior stable box to going out onto the track.
📺 This is the journey every horse makes to the track at @Ascot - starting from the traffic lights on the High Street! #ChampionsDay pic.twitter.com/sZjgJ3V9na
— Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) October 21, 2017
After Aidan O’Brien’s winner in the first race, all attention will now turn to whether the trainer can beat Bobby Frankel’s Group One-race winning total for a year. He needs two more to overtake the legendary American handler’s record. Andy Stephens of Racing UK has all the stats you need.
Andy Stephens assesses O'Brien's biggest #ChampionsDay team - is it good enough to get him over the line?
— Racing UK (@Racing_UK) October 20, 2017
▶️ https://t.co/lmKrYWR73N pic.twitter.com/AUtoyp4vHe
Updated
Champions Sprint (2.00) preview
The best form on offer is Harry Angel’s demolition job at Haydock last time but it’s asking a lot for a three-year-old to keep producing performances at that level and there is no twang in his odds. Quiet Reflection has had an easier year but looked close to her best in her prep-race in Ireland and should get involved at 7-1.
Latest betting: 11-8 Harry Angel, 4-1 Caravaggio, 6-1 Quiet Reflection, 10-1 The Tin Man, 12-1 Librisa Breeze, 16-1 Tasleet, 25-1 Donjuan Triumphant.
For those taking notes, looks as if the official description of testing ground is correct given the time Order Of St George clocked in the opening race.
Race 1 won in about 3m 38.0s https://t.co/3SrxOIZhI1
— Simon Rowlands (@RowleyfileRRR) October 21, 2017
Updated
Long Distance Cup (1.25) result
1 Order Of St George (R L Moore) 4-5 Fav
2 Torcedor (C O’Donoghue) 25-1
3 Stradivarius (L Dettori) 4-1
13 ran
Long Distance Cup (1.25)
And they’re off ... Cap’n (having first ever run incredibly) very slow into stride ... but Big Orange leads ... Mount Moriah and Stars Over The Sea are prominent with Order of St George and Dartmouth in midfield ... Stars Over The Sea has lost his position ... Order Of St George has made nice progress ... Big Orange goes backwards ... as they turn for home ... Mount Moriah leads with Order Of St George back in third ... Torcedor takes the lead ... Order Of St George fights back in the final half furlong to win.
Updated
HM is at the track today and might be considered that Dartmouth is getting a bit warm in the paddock apparently ...
Dartmouth looking very warm before the Long Distance Cup. Big Orange and Strad looked great. #ChampionsDay pic.twitter.com/JX1NCFQ2fc
— Geoffrey Riddle (@Louchepunter) October 21, 2017
Updated
Long Distance Cup (1.25) preview
Order Of St George gets his ground but has had another long year and short odds do not appeal in a hot race. Big Orange and Stradivarius might both prefer a drier surface, so a chance is taken on the improving Desert Skyline, who stormed home in the Doncaster Cup last time.
Latest betting: 5-6 Order Of St George, 9-2 Stradivarius, 10-1 Big Orange, Desert Skyline, 12-1 Duretto, 20-1 Dartmouth, 25-1 bar.
Updated
ITV have started their Champions Day coverage. There is a lot to like about the new channel’s racing programmes and no one has more respect than me for AP McCoy, but I don’t understand why the multiple champion jumps jockey is used for Flat meetings, as he is again today. Why not have Johnny Murtagh for the meetings on the levels and McCoy for the steeplechasing? The ex-jockeys are there to give their insight on riding the tracks and their experience in racing against their fellow pilots. McCoy doesn’t have any with regards to Flat racing and racing around Ascot’s unique track.
The calm before the storm. Prepped and ready to go! 👌Watch LIVE on ITV from 1pm #ChampionsDay pic.twitter.com/yncWH7UboQ
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) October 21, 2017
There’s a very nice little item on page 38 of today’s Times newspaper about Countdown, featuring the sort of word the Thunderer doesn’t normally have in its pages. In other news, Carol Vorderman has arrived. She’s getting plenty of comments.
with buddies @alexinaholt @Ascot @ChampionsSeries pic.twitter.com/WFWg5oXWS7
— Carol Vorderman (@carolvorders) October 21, 2017
Updated
Talking of the Long Distance Cup, it appears the French are not amused at the race being scheduled a day before their stayers’ contest, the Prix Royal Oak tomorrow. For Long Distance Cup read Brexit Cup!
Politics spills over into racing as the Long Distance Cup, run just 24 hours before the Prix Royal Oak, is dubbed la Brexit Cup. pic.twitter.com/mi8U1AMp6X
— Emma Berry (@CollingsBerry) October 21, 2017
Updated
Big news ... Big Orange runs ... the most popular horse in training will get his chance to race in the Long Distance Cup despite the soft ground as Rupert Bell, brother of trainer Michael, has just revealed on Twitter.
Blowing a bit of a hoolee but now dry @Ascot #ChampionsDay the big 🍊def runs pic.twitter.com/QMmHLAFNV9
— rupert bell (@Rupertbell) October 21, 2017
Chris Stickels, the clerk of the course, or in other words the man who tells us what it’s like out on the track, has been telling Mike Cattermole about conditions at Ascot. How soft the ground is and how windy and in what direction Storm Brian is blowing in are all-important. Here are Stickels’ words of wisdom:
“We have now had about 17mm of rain this week, following three millimetres of rain overnight, with a further two millimetres up until midday. This month we’ve only had about 19mm, so it’s quite surprising that most of it has fallen this week. The majority of the rain, around 14 millimetres, has fallen since the declaration stage.
“When I first walked it this morning at 6am, the going was soft and after walking it again, I have made a small adjustment to the going description on the round course. It is quite wet underfoot because we have had that rain this morning.”
Regarding the forecast for the rest of the day, Stickels continued: “There is the risk of blustery showers throughout the day and we have had a couple of heavy showers this morning that I wasn’t really expecting. We are expecting it to get quite windy. In fact, I expected it to be windier already, but the wind will pick up and the gusts are expected to reach up to 45mph. The wind will come from behind the grandstand and will be blowing down the track, so it will affect the runners.
“There will be a bit of a headwind as they turn in and as they are coming up the straight, so it will be fairly testing and tiring for them. The best of the ground on the straight course will be middle to far side and I would imagine that they would stay in that area.”
Clerk of the Course Chris Stickels gives an update on the Going at Ascot for QIPCO British #ChampionsDay pic.twitter.com/T0vKGYgivd
— Ascot Racecourse (@Ascot) October 21, 2017
Updated
Crowdfunding page started for Ken Dooley
A JustGiving crowdfunding page has been set up to suport the family of Ken Dooley, the stable lad who was tragically killed after being struck by a horse at Kempton Park on Saturday 14th October.
Ken, who was in his 50s, reportedly died after being kicked in the head by a horse. He had worked in the stable yard for seven years.
So far more than £1,300 has been donated.
For further information or to donate, visit the page below.
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/kempton-incident
You will want to know where to place your hard-earned cash and chief tipster Chris Cook takes you through the Ascot card in our traditional Saturday Talking Horses feature ...
Hello and welcome to our Champions Day coverage. Greg Wood will be reporting live from Ascot and I’ll be guiding you through the day’s action with the help of Chris Cook’s expert tipping.
Updated
Greg Wood's preamble
Remember Brian and Ben? They were the mythical racegoers dreamed up by a team of marketing executives back in 2009, when the sport was in the throes of a relaunch which ultimately led to the creation of Champions Day at Ascot to cater for a new breed of fan. Brian was described as “traditional”, “British” and someone who “thinks in quite an old-minded way”. Ben was “younger-minded than Brian, more wordly, in touch with a new generation but the nice bit about him is that he can talk to your grandmother”.
There will be plenty of Bens in attendance at Ascot this afternoon, but the bad news for the organisers is that this year, Brian is coming too. The going was already soft when rain arrived at the track just before 10.30, and while the latest forecasts suggest that it will ease off into occasional showers well before the opening race at 1.25, many racegoers could be spending almost as much time looking at the sky as they are at the horses.
Whatever happens, this year’s Champions Day is going to be another muddy one, like three of the first six, and a sharp contrast to the Royal meeting here in June, when the meeting opened on quick ground in sweltering heat. This will be the fifth time that there has been “soft” in the going description somewhere, and is potentially the first when the ground will be heavy, at least in places. The idea that the “champions” of a summer sport can regularly be anointed on testing ground when both horse and rider are covered in mud still seems very odd to me, but the mid-October date is apparently now set in stone, so we will have to get used to it.
So will the cast that has assembled for today’s card, which has as much strength in depth as any Champions Day meeting to date. It is a real pity that the opening stayers’ race, which includes a rematch of a brilliant Gold Cup in June when Big Orange edged out Order Of St George, will not be run on the good ground or better that would give Big Orange a real chance to show his best form, while Highland Reel, another winner at the Royal meeting, would also be a lot shorter than 14-1 for the Champion Stakes on good-to-firm going. Other big names, though, including Ribchester, the favourite for the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, and Cracksman, the market leader for the Champion, do have form on soft going and should run to form if the conditions do not deteriorate dramatically.
Britain’s champion trainer and jockey will also be awarded their trophies today, though both title races were effectively over months ago. Aidan O’Brien, who missed out in the Caulfield Cup in Australia this morning and still needs two more Group One wins to beat Bobby Frankel’s world record of 25, will feature a lot more prominently on the card than Silvestre de Sousa, the champion jockey for the second time in three years, who has just a single ride, in the opening Group Two race.
There is still just one non-runner – Tupi, in the 2.00 – and an update on the going is expected shortly after Chris Stickels, the clerk of the course, walked the entire track at 10.30.
Updated
