St George is in Gold Cup Order
AIDAN O’BRIEN has made the Ascot Gold Cup something of a personal mission in the past decade and ORDER OF ST GEORGE (Ascot, 4.20) can extend Ballydoyle’s domination today. Leading Light, Fame And Glory and the magnificent Yeats have ensured O’Brien has found the Flat season’s premier staying event a happy hunting ground and his representative appears to have the perfect combination of speed and stamina to complete a fabulous five-timer in today’s feature. Victory by a wide margin in last season’s Irish Leger saw the four-year-old scorch on to the Gold Cup radar and his comeback in the Saval Beg Stakes, a route his trainer has employed many times prior to Royal Ascot, again displayed his turn of foot. A stayer with speed can be a lethal combination and the selection boasts both in plentiful supply — that change of gear is a vital attribute in a short straight like Ascot. Both Clever Cookie and Mizzou will love conditions and hold frame chances with the latter likely to improve on last year’s run, when the ground was too lively. Melbourne Cup runnerup Max Dynamite will also be sharper for his Sandown spin, but it is Order Of St George that can join a pantheon of greats with victory today.