This year’s Royal Ascot looks to have attracted a sensational cast of international raiders and race fans will be licking their lips at the prospect of some of this year’s Group One contests.
American wondermare Tepin is set to be the headline act on the opening day of the meeting after it was confirmed that she will run in the Queen Anne Stakes on Tuesday 14th June. The 2015 Breeders’ Cup Mile heroine is set for her first trip out of America and a mouth-watering clash with the likes of Time Test and Belardo should ensure that the extravaganza gets off to a scintillating start.
The presence of the globetrotter has certainly delighted Nick Smith, Ascot’s Director of Racing and Communications, and he explained: “Animal Kingdom and California Chrome were both Kentucky Derby winners who also went on grass. Tepin has already proved herself at the highest level and she’s not a manufactured turf horse.
“So this is a different proposition, and we really hope she would be good enough to, if not win the race, to go very, very close. I can’t think of a better American turf challenger.”
Tepin will be joined by another formidable overseas contender in the shape of Japanese sensation A Shin Hikari who looks on course for Group One glory in the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes on Wednesday 15th June. The five-year-old’s explosive victory in the 2016 Prix d’Ispahan at Chantilly on his European debut has caught the attention of racing fans and the way he laughed at his rivals, many of whom possessed Group One-winning form, will surely make him difficult to beat at next month’s showpiece.
Race fans from all over the world will be tuning into this year’s Royal Ascot meeting and Editor of RacingTips.com, Nick Wilby, believes that it could be an unmissable renewal of Ascot’s flagship event.
He commented: “It looks like being a fascinating five days at this year’s Royal meeting and the ante post betting suggests that some of the major races are going to be ultra-competitive. If Tepin can sink the bookies with a victory in the Queen Anne on day one then it could set the tone for a tough week for the layers and A Shin Hikari could be a disastrous result for on-course firms.
“That being said, the home challenge is as strong as ever and Aidan O’Brien, Roger Varian and the rest of our leading handlers will be keen to make sure that the major honours stay in Europe.”