Three-time Gold Cup winner Stradivarius and jockey Frankie Dettori are the headline acts on Gold Cup day at Royal Ascot and the roof could come off the Ascot grandstand if one of the most popular horses in training lands the week's blue-riband contest.
Stradivarius is a general 2-1 second favourite to make amends for last year's defeat in the race and equal the great Yeats but the eight-year-old will need to be at the top of his game if he's to topple Aidan O'Brien's unexposed stayer Kyprios, who heads the betting at 11-8. The Gold Cup market has been reformed this morning after the defection of Trueshan who didn't get the ground he needed.
Stradivarius isn't Dettori's only big ride today because the Italian is the man that could well give The Queen a hugely popular Royal Ascot winner in the year of her Platinum Jubilee.
One-time Derby favourite Reach For The Moon faces just five rivals in the Group 3 Hampton Court Stakes and he's been the subject of major morning support (2-5 from 8-13) to go one better than at Sandown on return. The Sea The Stars colt looks head and shoulders above these rivals and he can land this en route to a crack at the Coral Eclipse Stakes.
Check out our full list of market movers below.
It's going to be another scorcher at the Berkshire venue with temperatures set t reach a high of 27C by mid afternoon.
Ground conditions are officially described as good to firm on both the straight and round courses after 4mm of water was added to the track on Wednesday evening.
Today's seven-race Royal Ascot card begins at 2.30 and runs right through to the final contest at 6.10. ITV Racing will be showing EVERY race throughout the week - the first six will be on the main channel while the final will be shown on ITV4.
Fast ground and stunning weather look set to be the theme of the week up until Saturday when thunderstorms are forecast, and most importantly, Ascot is back to full capacity for the first time since the pandemic.
Non runners (2)
2.30 No 5 My First Rodeo
4.20 No 4 Trueshan
Full market movers round-up on Thursday
- 3.40 - Magical Lagoon 2-1 from 3-1
- 5.00 - Wanees 7-1 from 12-1
- 5.00 - Koy Koy 12-1 from 20-1
- 5.35 - Reach For The Moon 2-5 from 8-13
- 6.10 - Tanmawwy 12-1 from 25-1
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Ground and weather update
Official going : Good To Firm (GoingStick: Straight Course 8.4, Round Course 7.4)
Weather : Hot, dry and sunny with a high of 27 degrees.
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