Royal Ascot 2022 Guide: Racedays & Horses To Watch

Two of Australia’s finest thoroughbreds have made the long voyage to the UK to take on Europe’s leading lights at Royal Ascot this week.

Trainer Chris Waller accompanied star duo Home Affairs and Nature Strip on the long journey, which included stopovers in Singapore and Dubai. He reported that they are both in great shape as they gear up for the Platinum Jubilee Stakes and the King’s Stand Stakes respectively.

Both races will generate a great deal of excitement back home, but punters can also look forward to many more exciting events at Britain’s most prestigious meeting. Read on to learn more about Royal Ascot 2022.

 

Royal Ascot: The History, Prestige and Importance

Royal Ascot is the highlight of the flat racing calendar in Britain. It is the country’s richest and the most prestigious meeting, with prize money of £8.65 million (A$15.12 million). There are only 36 Group 1 races during the entire season, and eight of them take place during this five-day meeting. There are a further 11 Group 2 and Group 3 races on the cards.

Many of these races boast a glorious heritage. For example, the Ascot Gold Cup was first run in 1807, and many others were inaugurated during the 19th century. The Royal Family attends each year, led by Queen Elizabeth II, which adds glamour and ceremony to proceedings.

The leading runners from Britain, Ireland and France always take part, but it also attracts elite sprinters, middle-distance runners and stayers from further afield. Several raiders from Japan, the USA, New Zealand and, of course, Australia have enjoyed success at Royal Ascot over the years.  The legendary Black Caviar won the Diamond Jubilee Stakes in 2012, while So You Think also won the Prince of Wales’s Stakes that year.

The Diamond Jubilee Stakes – now renamed the Platinum Jubilee Stakes to mark 70 years of the queen’s reign – has been a happy hunting ground for Aussie horses, with Merchant Navy, Starspangledbanner and Choisir all saluting, while Scenic Blast, Miss Andretti, Takeover Target and Choisir all won the King’s Stand Stakes.

 

Royal Ascot Day 1 

There are seven races held on each of the five days at Royal Ascot. AEST is nine hours ahead of the UK, so you will need to stay up late to watch the action unfold. It starts on Tuesday at 11.30pm AEST and runs until 3.10am. These are the seven races on Day 1:

 

  • 11.30pm: The Queen Anne Stakes (Class 1) (Group 1) – 1600m
  • 12.05am: The Coventry Stakes (Class 1) – 1207m
  • 12.40am: The King’s Stand Stakes (Class 1) (Group 1) – 1005m
  • 1.20am: The St James’s Palace Stakes (Class 1) (Group 1) – 1603m
  • 2.00am: The Ascot Stakes (Class 2) – 4014m
  • 2.35am: The Wolferton Stakes (Class 1) – 2004m
  • 3.10am: The Copper Horse Stakes (Class 2 handicap) – 2800m

 

The UK uses miles, furlongs and yards as opposed to the metric system, which explains some of the odd distances.

The feature race each day is the fourth race on the cards. That is the St James’s Palace Stakes on day one. Coroebus is the 1.44 favourite in our fixed win markets, ahead of My Prospero. The King’s Stand Stakes is likely to be of greater interest to Australian punters, who will hope to see Nature Strip follow in the footsteps of Scenic Blast, Miss Andretti, Takeover Target and Choisir by saluting.

 

Royal Ascot Day 2

Each day at Royal Ascot follows the same format, kicking off at 11.30pm AEST and ending at 3.10am, with a gap of 35-40 minutes between each race. These are the races on Day 2:

 

  • 11.30pm: The Queen Mary Stakes (Class 1) (Group 2) – 1006m
  • 12.05am: The Queen’s Vase (Class 1) (Group 2) – 2847m
  • 12.40am: The Duke of Cambridge Stakes (Class 1) (Group 2) – 1609m
  • 1.20am: The Prince of Wales’s Stakes (Class 1) (Group 1) – 2004m
  • 2.00am: The Royal Hunt Cup (Class 2) – 1609m
  • 2.35am: The Windsor Castle Stakes (Class 1) (Listed) – 1006m
  • 3.10am: The Kensington Palace Stakes (Class 2) – 1408m

 

The Prince of Wales’s Stakes is the feature race, but the Queen’s Vase and the Queen Mary Stakes will also feature very strong fields.

  

Royal Ascot Day 3

The Ascot Gold Cup is the feature race on the third day of the meeting. This is Britain’s leading race for stayers, and it is widely considered to be the most prestigious race at Royal Ascot. These are the races to look out for on the third day:

  • 11.30pm: The Norfolk Stakes (Class 1) (Group 2) – 1006m
  • 12.05am: King George V Stakes (Class 2) – 2406m
  • 12.40am: The Ribblesdale Stakes (Class 1) (Group 2) – 2406m
  • 1.20am: The Gold Cup (Class 1) (Group 1) – 4014m
  • 2.00am: The Britannia Stakes (Class 2 heritage handicap) – 1609m
  • 2.35am: The Hampton Court Stakes (Class 1) (Group 3) – 2004m
  • 3.10am: The Buckingham Palace Stakes (Class 2 handicap) – 1408m

 

Royal Ascot Day 4 

There are two Group 1 races to look forward to on the penultimate day of the Royal meeting: the Commonwealth Cup and the Coronation Stakes. The latter is the feature race.

 

  • 11.30pm: The Albany Stakes (Class 1) (Group 3) – 1207m
  • 12.05am: The Commonwealth Cup (Class 1) (Group 1) – 1207m
  • 12.40am: The Duke of Edinburgh Stakes (Class 2 handicap) – 2406m
  • 1.20am: The Coronation Stakes (Class 1) (Group 1) – 1603m
  • 2.00am: The Sandringham Stakes (Class 2 handicap) – 1609m
  • 2.35am: The King Edward VII Stakes (Class 1) (Group 2) – 2406m
  • 3.10am: The Palace of Holyroodhouse Stakes (Class 2 handicap) – 1006m

 

Royal Ascot Day 5

The action concludes with seven more races on Day 5. The main event is the Platinum Jubilee Stakes. It was named the All-Aged Stakes when it was inaugurated in 1968, but it was renamed the Golden Jubilee Stakes in 2002 to commemorate 50 years of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign. As such, it was renamed the Diamond Jubilee Stakes in 2012 and it has now been changed to the Platinum Jubilee Stakes after the 96-year-old monarch made it to 70 years on the throne in 2022.

 

  • 11.30pm: The Chesham Stakes (Class 1) (Listed) – 1408m
  • 12.05am: The Jersey Stakes (Class 1) (Group 3) – 1408m
  • 12.40am: The Hardwicke Stakes (Class 1) (Group 2) – 2406m
  • 1.20am: The Platinum Jubilee Stakes (Class 1) (Group 1) – 1207m
  • 2.00am: The Wokingham Stakes (Class 2 heritage handicap) – 1207m
  • 2.35am: The Golden Gates Stakes (Class 2 handicap) – 2000m
  • 3.10am: The Queen Alexandra Stakes (Class 2 conditions race) – 4355m

 

Horses to watch at Royal Ascot 2022

These are the key horses to look out for in the feature race each day:

 

The St James’s Palace Stakes

This race is open to three-year-old colts. Coroebus is the favourite following his victory in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket earlier this year. We make My Prospero the 5.00 second favourite in the fixed win markets. The lightly-raced Irish runner won the listed Heron Stakes last time out. Stablemate Maljoom is next in the betting at 8.25, having won all three starts this year.

 

The Prince of Wales’s Stakes

This race is open to all horses aged four years and older. Bay Bridge is the heavy favourite at 1.85 for a fixed win and 1.14 for a fixed place. He is saddled by Sir Michael Stoute, the most successful trainer in the history of this meeting. Bay Bridge finished five lengths ahead of Mostahdaf to win the Group 3 Brigadier Gerard Stakes at Sandown last month.

 

Ascot Gold Cup

Stradivarius won this famous staying race three times in a row between 2018 and 2020. He tried to match Yeats’ record of four Gold Cup triumphs last year, but he could only finish fourth. Stradivarius will be back for another crack at this race. We make him the narrow favourite at 3.00 in the fixed win market and 1.45 for a fixed odds place, ahead of Kyprios, who saluted in the Group 3 Saval Beg Levmoss Stakes at Leopardstown in May.  

 

The Coronation Stakes

This is a race for three-year-old fillies. Homeless Songs is the favourite after winning last month’s Irish 1000 Guineas. She will lock horns with Inspiral, who won the Group 1 Fillies Mile during an unbeaten campaign last year.

 

The Platinum Jubilee Stakes

Home Affairs is the favourite for the Platinum Jubilee Stakes. He will face competition from Campanelle, who has an excellent track record at Royal Ascot. The Irish-bred, America-trained mare won the Queen Mary Stakes in 2020 and the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot last year, so she will now bid for another triumph on this great stage.

Australian Horses Running at Royal Ascot 2022

Nature Strip is the world’s top-rated sprinter right now. He was the Australian Racehorse of the Year for 2019/20, and he won The Everest last year. In April, Nature Strip won the T. J. Smith Stakes for the third time, equalling Chautauqua’s record. Now he will bid for glory at Ascot. He is the 2.50 favourite for a fixed win and priced at 1.45 for a fixed place. 

Home Affairs is the 4.60 favourite for the Platinum Jubilee Stakes, with 1.65 available on a fixed-odds placed. Waller continues to unearth superstars, including Winx and Verry Elleegant, and Home Affairs is the latest off the conveyor belt. He finished ahead of Nature Strip to win the Group 1 Black Caviar Lightning at Flemington in February, and he also won the Group 1 Coolmore Stud Stakes last year.

 

Royal Ascot 2022 Betting

You can bet on every race at Royal Ascot at TopSport. Check out our futures racing page to browse a list of the races and check out the odds on offer.

 

**Odds quoted are accurate at the time of writing but are subject to change