Stoute has last ‘Word’ as King George the sixth
POET’S WORD provided Michael Stoute with a record-breaking sixth success in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes in a spellbinding renewal of the great race at Ascot on Saturday.
There was no Cracksman, but it did not matter as Stoute’s inmate and James Doyle ensured a memorable finish at the expense of stablemate Crystal Ocean, the 6/4 favourite ridden by William Buick.
For a moment, it looked as though Doyle had given the Prince of Wales’ Stakes winner too much to do, but the pair fought out a colossal final-furlong battle before the 7/4 shot prevailed by a neck.
Stoute, who first won the King George in 1981 with the mighty Shergar, said: “It was pity there was a loser. That’s how you sum it up. Doyle could have done a little bit better and got a dead-heat!
“They are two such admirable horses and it’s delightful to train them. I always felt he wouldn’t get there until the last 100 yards or so.
“It’s a great mid-season race and we’ve been lucky enough to do well in it. It’s a great team effort, you have no idea how much they put into these horses.”
Having gone almost three years without a domestic Group One winner until the victory of Ulysses in last year’s Coral-Eclipse, Stoute, who become the winning-most trainer at the Royal meeting in June, has now saddled five top-level winners in Britain since last July.
“If you look closely, we were having Group winners abroad in the Breeders’ Cup etc. I’m never going to be champion trainer again as I don’t have the numbers and the quality has deteriorated slightly, but at least we are making a few runs,” said Stoute.
Poet’s Word joins Shergar (1981), Opera House (1993), Golan (2002), Conduit (2009) and Harbinger (2010) as a Stoute-trained winner of the King George.
There was a slight sting in the tail for both Doyle and Buick, after the stewards inquired into their use of the whip from around a furlong and a half out. Doyle was handed a four-day ban and Buick suspended for two days.
Having finished second at Newmarket to 1000 Guineas favourite Pretty Pollyanna – a race which saw Frankie Dettori hit with a careless riding ban by the stewards – Angel’s Hideaway got back on track with a stylish victory in the Keeneland Stakes.
Burnt Sugar completed a big summer handicap double when adding the International Stakes to his success in the Bunbury Cup, while Crack On Crack On made up for his disappointment at the Royal meeting in the Porsche Handicap.
In Germany, Saeed bin Suroor’s Benbatl returned to winning ways with a Group One triumph, teeing up a run in either the Juddmonte International or Irish Champion Stakes.