Stoute’s plan for Ulysses to reel in rival
Daring hold-up tactics could be the key to Ulysses turning the tables on Highland reel in Saturday’s King george Vi & Queen Elizabeth Stakes.
The Sir Michael Stoutetrained four- year- old was fourth to Highland reel when they clashed in the 2016 Breeders’ Cup Turf at Santa anita and then third to aidan O’Brien’s no 1 hope, beaten just over a length, in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at royal ascot.
Since that run, Ulysses has produced a career-best when edging out Barney roy with a final-stride thrust in the Eclipse Stakes under champion jockey Jim Crowley at Sandown.
alan Cooper, racing manager to the colt’s niarchos family owners, believes Crowley will seek to play a similar hand when the four-year- old tries a mile and a half for the first time this season in ascot’s Qipco- sponsored £1.15million race.
Cooper said: ‘Maybe in the Prince of Wales’s, Ulysses thought it was job done and we have to hold him up a bit more. Jim was patient in the Eclipse. He even said after the race that he would have liked to be more patient, but he couldn’t because the horse was ready to go. as a horse matures, you learn more about him and what he is more comfortable with.’
Stoute, who has won five King georges, is comfortable with the step up in trip for his 8-1 shot. The trainer added: ‘He won the (mile-and-a-half) gordon Stakes last season and ran a very solid race at Santa anita. He is more settled this year and is relaxing better. That is definitely to his advantage.’
Soft ground would be against Ulysses. But, although the ascot course is currently soft in places and rain is forecast today, the ground is expected to be good on Saturday.
Last year’s equivalent programme was the best attended race day in the last 10 years, with an aggregate attendance of 130,594 across seven meetings in Britain.
racecourses are expecting a large turnout again and big numbers are also being talked about by the BHa, who have announced a welcome extra £ 10m will be pumped into grassroots racing in 2018.
Less welcome will be an extra 11 fixtures, taking the number to a record 1,508 — a case of quantity over quality.
Tom Queally has been approached to ride argentinian King george hope Sixties Song.