Dubai: Channock Chase, owned by Dubai businessman Saeed Suhail, is looking to score a second successive victory at Royal Ascot when he runs in the Group 1 Prince of Wales’s Stakes on Wednesday.

 

An impressive winner of the Group 3 Tercentenary Stakes (Formerly The Hampton Court Stakes), 12 months ago, the four-year-old son of Lemon Drop Kid faces eight rivals in a race that traditionally attracts horses that had participated in the Classics.

Despite the late withdrawal of American hope California Chrome, this year’s renewal has a truly international flavour with challengers from Australia, Japan and France lining up alongside UK trained contenders.

Winner of the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes in 2013 California Chrome was ruled out due to a foot abscess.

Trained by Sir Michael Stoute, whose only success in the race came back in 1991 with Stagecraft, Channock Chase is likely to be suited by the quick ground on which he won a competitive renewal of the Tercentenary Stakes last year.

However, the Prince of Wales’s Stakes represents a huge step up in class and Stoute’s star will have to be at the top of his game to trouble the likes of Free Eagle, Ectot and The Grey Gatsby.

Pat Smullen, looking for a first win in the contest, was bullish about the chances of Free Eagle who is primed for his seasonal bow.

“Free Eagle is in good form, we’re very happy with him. We’d have loved to have got a run into him before a race like this, but it wasn’t to be,” said Smullen.

“He’s in tremendous form and everybody knows what I think of him. Let’s hope we have a good run round and whatever happens, I think we’ll have a lovely season with him.”

Kevin Ryan’s The Grey Gatsby hammered last year’s dual Derby winner Australia in the Irish Champion Stakes (G1) before bowing to the brilliant French raider Solow in the Dubai Turf (G1) at Meydan. On his most recent start he finished fourth behind Al Kazeem in the Tattersalls Gold Cup.

“It was a good run in Dubai, coming back in trip on a sharp track and Solow is a very good horse. He’d had a prep run as well,” Ryan told At The Races.

“If we hadn’t gone there and the ground had come up very soft in Ireland, there was a chance his first run would have been at Royal Ascot, so we had nothing to lose by going out there.

“He loves a stronger pace and probably wants a bit more cover than he got at the Curragh, but it was a messy sort of race and I didn’t hide the fact he would improve an awful lot for the run. He was quite heavy.

“The favourite’s a very good horse, but we just concentrate on our own horse and turn up on the day in the best shape we can get him. Hopefully he runs his race.”

Wednesday’s card also features the Ascot Queen Mary Stakes (G2), Ascot Duke of Cambridge Stakes (G2), Ascot Jersey Stakes (G3) and Ascot Royal Hunt Cup.