Royal Ascot: Baaeed & Stradivarius among runners as Queen seeks winner

Big crowds will return as a week of top-class racing and high fashion mix when Royal Ascot starts on Tuesday.

A highlight of the British summer social scene, the five-day meeting features 35 races with a record £8.65m in prize money.

The Queen will not attend on Tuesday although she may be there on another of the days in her Platinum Jubilee year.

The unbeaten Baaeed and record-seeking Stradivarius will be among the equine stars on show during the week.

The meeting was held behind closed doors in 2020 and crowds were limited to a daily capacity of 12,000 last year because of Covid-19.

While capacity in some enclosures has been reduced to "improve the customer experience", the total attendance is likely to be about 270,000 with dry and warm weather forecast.

Kicking off with a bang, there are three top-level Group One races on the first day.

Baaeed, currently the top-rated horse in the world, is hot favourite for the opening Queen Anne Stakes.

The four-year-old, trained by William Haggas, easily won won the Lockinge Stakes at Newbury under Jim Crowley last month on his seasonal return to extend his unbeaten run to seven races.

Several runners from the United States, Australia and Japan will lend an international flavour to the week's action.

Golden Pal, described by American trainer Wesley Ward as "the fastest of the fast", takes on Australian sprinter Nature Strip in Tuesday's second Group One race, the King's Stand Stakes.

In the same race King's Lynn, trained by Andrew Balding, is one of several contenders this week owned by the Queen.

The 96-year-old monarch has been experiencing mobility problems and pulled out of a planned trip to the Derby at Epsom this month.

With uncertainty over the Queen's attendance, it could mark the end of one Ascot bookmaking tradition - betting on the colour of her hat.

Tuesday's third Group One race sees 2,000 Guineas winner Coroebus head the field in the St James's Palace Stakes for Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby.

Wednesday

Sir Michael Stoute, fresh from his sixth Derby success thanks to Desert Crown, saddles impressive Sandown victor Bay Bridge in the Prince of Wales's Stakes.

Japan will hope for a first Royal Ascot winner with Shahrya, whose owners also have Grenadier Guards in Saturday's Platinum Jubilee Stakes.

Thursday

Stradivarius, the mount of Frankie Dettori for trainers John and Thady Gosden, will go for a record-equalling fourth Gold Cup but must overcome Aidan O'Brien's highly-rated Kyprios.

Dettori, the leading current jockey at the meeting with 76 winners, is also set tor ride stablemate Reach For the Moon, owned by the Queen, in the Hampton Court Stakes.

Friday

Classic winners Homeless Songs, Cachet and Mangoustine are poised to clash in the Coronation Stakes, which will also see the unbeaten Inspiral return, while American challenger Spendarella is an interesting contender.

Homeless Songs was an impressive winner of the Irish 1,000 Guineas, Cachet won the Guineas at Newmarket and a close second to Mangoustine in the French version.

Saturday

Australian trainer Chris Wall, who guided the legendary Winx to 33 successive wins, looks set to have a leading hand in the Platinum Jubilee Stakes.

He plans to run Home Affairs, and stable companion Nature Strip could also line up after appearing in Tuesday's King's Stand Stakes.