An early look at Breeders’ Cup implications from Royal Ascot

Now that another outstanding Royal Ascot is in the books, it’s time to evaluate the Breeders’ Cup implications from the British summer spectacle. The four “Win and You’re In” contests are the obvious places to start, but last week’s Royal festivities promise to have a bearing in other divisions as well.

Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1)

The “Win and You’re In” Prince of Wales’s (G1) pitting Crystal Ocean, Magical, and Sea of Class unfortunately took place on the miserably rainy Wednesday when the ground was soft. The first two coped with conditions, while Sea of Class never gained traction. Indeed, her trainer, William Haggas, almost scratched her, and he later expressed appreciation to jockey James Doyle for taking care of her in fifth. This comeback proved to be no more than a day out for Sea of Class – draw the proverbial line through it. Crystal Ocean prevailed over Magical thanks to a tactically brilliant piece of riding by Frankie Dettori, on his way to champion jockey honors. If Dettori allowed Magical to get first run, Crystal Ocean likely wouldn’t have outkicked her on a rain-affected track. So Dettori made maximum use of Crystal Ocean’s abundant stamina. Effectively commandeering Magical’s pacemaker, Hunting Horn, for his own use, Crystal Ocean tracked him and made his move leaving the turn. Magical tried her heart out, having to alter course as Dettori craftily employed an acceptable degree of race riding. But in these circumstances, she was never going to reel in Crystal Ocean as he stayed on relentlessly to the line.

Crystal Ocean’s first Group 1 laurel earned him a spot in the Breeders’ Cup Turf, and Sir Michael Stoute figures to keep that objective in mind. Magical, a gallant runner-up to Enable at Churchill Downs last November, is a logical contender to try again for Aidan O’Brien. The master of Ballydoyle might have another proper Turf contender in Japan, who dismantled the field in Friday’s King Edward VII (G2). Despite taking the overland route as Bangkok whipped up the rail and got a split, Japan stormed 4 1/2 lengths clear. And his time for 1 1/2 miles on good-to-soft, 2:29.16, was considerably faster than older handicappers went in the Duke of Edinburgh (2:30.57) later on the card. Japan was moving forward off his near-miss third in the Derby (G1), and if he’d had time for a second prep for Epsom, perhaps that result would have been different. Bangkok has New York’s turf triple in his sights, according to trainer Andrew Balding, so we’ll get an early stateside indicator of the strength of his form.