Dubai: Several horses with Dubai connections have strong claims on Day 2 at Royal Ascot, but perhaps none more than Usherette, Godolphin’s French-trained filly, who runs in the Group 2 Duke of Cambridge Stakes.
Trained by legendary horse trainer Andre Fabre, the daughter of Shamardal is unbeaten in her last three starts including the Group 2 Dahlia Stakes at Newmarket last month were she left a big impression after beating some big names.
Usherette, who has been partnered by Mickael Barzalona in all five of her career starts, drops down in distance to take on some of last season’s leading Classic generation fillies.
Assessing her chances of giving Godolphin a first Duke of Cambridge Trophy, Chief executive and racing manager John Ferguson said: “The Duke of Cambridge is a nice race for her, even though she has won over nine furlongs, as you really need to stay at Ascot.
“She has the quality for the Duke of Cambridge and it is the most appropriate race for her at Royal Ascot.
“I just love talking to Andre Fabre about Usherette as he gets the biggest smile on his face and it makes the rest of the conversation very easy.
“Andre is an extraordinary judge, which comes from years of experience and being a great talent. He does have a very high opinion of this filly.”
Godolphin are also represented by the Saeed Bin Suroor-trained Always Smile (James Doyle) and the Irish duo of Devonshire (Willie McCreery/William Buick), proven at Group 2 level and Lucida (Jim Bolger/Kevin Manning), last year’s 1.000 Guineas runner-up.
Devonshire’s trainer Willie McCreery said: “She loves that soft ground and she’s used to running on it in Ireland.
“It [the ground] will help her and hinder others, that’s the way I see it.
“It’s a good race, but she’s in great form and is ready to go.”
The Godolphin trio face 11 rivals headed by the John Gosden-trained Jazzy Top, who finished seventh in the Dahlia Stakes.
Meanwhile, Godolphin’s Tryster (Charlie Appleby/William Buick) takes on highly-regarded Japanese raider A Shin Hikari and Breeders’ Cup Turf (Group 1) heroine Found in the Group 1 Prince Of Wales’s Stakes, Wednesday’s showpiece race.
The stable have a good record in the race with five wins and most recently with Rewilding, but Tryster will have to come up with something special to topple the likes of A Shin Hikari, Found and the mercurial The Grey Gatsby.
Appleby told the Godolphin website: “Tryster is having his first start back in the UK after a successful Dubai season. I am very pleased with him.
“It is a good renewal of the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes, but this is a starting point for Tryster’s UK season.”
Clive Cox’s My Dream Boat and the John Gosden-trained Western Hymn complete the select field.
The card also features the Group 2 Queen Mary Stake and the Group 3 Jersey Stakes.
