In recent seasons the sight of Alan King is just as likely to be found at Royal Ascot as it is at the Cheltenham Festival with his interest in the Flat getting stronger each season.
A total of 17 domestic winners yielded just shy of £450,000 in prize money, but that does not tell the whole story with plenty of those who failed to hit the target running races to suggest that this is the year to catch them.
However, for all the positive points to come out of the 2025 season, King, and his team, had to come to terms with the tragic loss of Trueshan, who suffered a fatal accident in the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup in July.
While his career will never be forgotten his absence leaves a void to be filled, which could be taken up by King’s breakthrough Betfred Derby entry Spyce, who is set to make his return in the bet365 Classic Trial at Sandown Park on Friday.
With a cluster of horses recently purchased from the Craven Breeze Up Sale at Tattersalls to go with his already promising team, exciting times look set to be just around the corner for a trainer, who has shown that he is at home training both three mile chasers and five furlong sprinters.
King said: “I think they are a good bunch this year and we have recently purchased six two year olds at the Craven Breeze Up Sale, along with being sent another one from there.
“It was a sad day losing Trueshan last year as he had been a wonderful horse for both the yard, and his owners, and what he achieved was fantastic.
“I think with the older horses we have, and the three year olds, we have a lot to look forward to.”
ALAN KING FLAT HORSES 2026
ALBERTINI STAR
“We got three runs into her to get her handicapped last season, but she didn’t winter very well.
"It took a long time for her to come back to herself, but she now looks terrific and she should give her owners a bit of fun this season in handicaps.
"I would have thought a mile will be her trip.”
ALCARATH
“He has been working great and he has done really well through the winter. He is much stronger now.
“He was probably past his best when he went up to Redcar at the end of last season. He was stuck on the rail, and then on and off the bridle.
"It won’t have done him any harm as he would have learned from it, but he has wintered particularly well.
“The plan is to go to Newmarket on Guineas weekend for the Suffolk Stakes over nine furlongs. He does look a lot sharper in his work this year.
“He could be one for a handicap at Royal Ascot, but how quick he would want the ground I’m not sure. He is rated eighty-nine, so he has a fair way to go to get there, but he has got potential.”
ATLAS MOUNTAIN
“He only had one run last year, but he ran promisingly at Goodwood. Those maidens around Goodwood are usually quite smart.
“His knees were quite open so we just gave him time and backed off him. I would imagine he wants a bit of juice in the ground as he hits it quite hard and I don’t think he would be a fast ground horse.
“He has been pleasing us and he has done well. He is another that has been gelded. I was satisfied with him at Newbury as he was just ready to start back. He wouldn’t want the ground any quicker than what it was at Newbury on Saturday.
“He will be one that once we have him handicapped that we will have a bit of fun with. We will tip away in another maiden or novice next time and see where we are.”
BARBURY BOY
“We got him handicapped last year. His last run at Nottingham the ground was bottomless and he didn’t really handle that. He is another that we have gelded.
“He is working away well and we should have a bit of fun with him. He could start off this week at Beverley.”
BARNSO
“He had the winter off as he was suffering from bone pain. He had three months in the field and has been doing a lot on the water treadmill. He will be ready from midsummer onwards.
"He has a good rating and if I get him right we will have a lot of fun, but I just couldn’t train him last season really.”
BLAZEON FIVE
“She was very progressive last year. I was delighted with her at Newbury as it was her first run back after having a winter break.
“She will come on for it a bit, but she wouldn’t want the ground any quicker than it was at Newbury on Friday. The main target is the Cesarewitch, but that is not until the end of the season.
“We will duck and dive, but we can’t run her on quick ground. That run showed she can be competitive off that mark of ninety two.”
DAIQUIRI BAY
“I think he has definitely improved. We gelded him at the end of last season as he was just getting quite colty, and a little bit naughty in the stalls.
“James Doyle rode him in the Old Rowley Cup and he said he just wished he had sent him on a bit earlier, but he just got shuffled back slightly at the three pole then stayed on very well. It was a good run.
“He has been lovely and relaxed this spring and has been working away grand.
“I’ve put him in the one mile six furlong handicap at the Guineas meeting at Newmarket. He is a horse to go to the big meetings with this summer.”
DEEDAYDIVA
“It was a good run on her final start of the season at Sandown Park, and the form looks good as Brian Meehan’s horse that was behind her later ran well in a Group One in France afterwards, which was strong form.
“She was only just ready to run at Nottingham as she has been a bit backward in her coat, but because she had the Guineas entry I needed to get her out and see where we were.
“She certainly isn’t going to go for a Guineas, but now she has had the run we can just back off her a little bit. There is a lot to look forward to.
“We will get her handicap mark this week and we will see what options we have. I still think the world of her and there will be a lot of improvement to come.
“It could be that we look at a Sandringham as Rossa (Ryan) mentioned that, but let’s just see where we are.
“She will certainly come on plenty for the run and she was fine on Sunday morning. I think she will get further than a mile as she is lovely and relaxed. I think a mile will be her minimum.”
GALAXY STAR
“She was great on her flat debut at Kempton Park. I thought it would be difficult for her to give all that weight away to the three year olds. She is good and I was very pleased with that.
"We will run her in another novice somewhere, but I think we can have some fun with her. I would think one mile three furlongs around Kempton Park would be her absolute minimum so I would think she would be more suited to going up in trip.
“How strong the race is I don’t know, but she couldn’t do any more than win and she will give the owners plenty of fun.”
HEROICS
“He only had the two runs last year, but he is a huge horse. We weren’t certain we would get him on the track last season.
“He finished second on his second start at Bath and the winner (Arc Ole Ole) came out and won a handicap at Doncaster on the opening weekend of the season, and that lets you know that the form is okay.
“He is not handicapped yet, and we will need to get a mark with him then we can start planning. He should be a proper stayer. We will start him at a mile and a quarter, but he will get a mile and a half plus as we go on as he is a big scopey horse.”
INSANITY
“He is a grand horse. He doesn’t get a mile six furlongs. We think he would but the few times we have tried he hasn’t quite got home. I think he is a proper mile and a half horse.
“The ground wasn’t great in the November Handicap on his last start so you can put a line through that. I think he will be another one for the big meetings. He does appreciate a bit of fast ground as he bounced around Ascot a few times.
“He was going to go to Epsom for the meeting that has been rescheduled, but luckily I put him at Pontefract this week as well.
“There is not a lot else for him so I thought I would get him started. He is not a horse that has never run well at Newmarket so I didn’t want to wait for that race there.
“He has been working away grand and had a proper winter holiday. Whatever he does he will improve for the run. The mile and a quarter would be the minimum for him as he is probably a proper mile and a half horse.”
JOHN HARRISON
“He has been away for a winter holiday, but is now back cantering. He has been gelded. He is learning all the time, but there are races to be won with him.
"He is rated sixty-five at the moment and I would like to think we can do something off that.”
LA KOSMOS
“She was progressive last season. She has had a winter holiday so she is a little bit further behind than some of them. On her last run she made up a lot of ground at Kempton Park.
“She has a middle distance pedigree and she will improve once we step her up in trip as she has so far only raced over seven furlongs. She will be a mile and a quarter filly later on.”
PARADIAS
“He is a grand horse that has run well all winter. We dropped him back to a mile and a quarter for All Weather Finals Day at Newcastle was not ideal as I think he wants a mile and a half plus now.
“It was a great run at Newcastle off a career high mark on the flat and the handicapper has nudged him up another two pounds so he must have been impressed. He is now bordering on being Listed class.
“I can see us trying him over a mile six furlongs on the turf later on in the season.”
PLAN C
“He progressed with each run last season. He got brushed aside at Sandown Park in a three runner race, but the winner came out and won by eleven lengths at Haydock Park next time so I think he bumped into a decent horse.
"He wasn’t quite right after that, and he wasn’t moving great, so we put him away. We had planned to start him at the Craven meeting, but we decided not to. However, he is in grand order.”
POMPETTE
“He has picked up an injury so you probably won’t see him until the second half of the season. It was a great run at Ascot behind Raaheeb, who is in the betting for the Derby.”
SPYCE
“He has wintered well and has been working great. Rossa (Ryan) felt he didn’t come down the hill on the quick ground in the Zetland at Newmarket, but it was still a very good run, and the winner went on to win a Group One later in the season.
“He was going to go to Epsom this week for the Blue Riband Trial, but that has now been put back so we will go to Sandown Park on Friday. He is ready to start. "Rossa (Ryan) can’t ride him this week so I’ve booked Tom Marquand for the ride and he is a pretty good deputy.
“He has wintered well and has been working well. We don’t know how good he is yet, and we don’t know what the opposition will be like on Friday, but we will learn an awful lot at the end of the week and hopefully it is positive.”
WISPER
“She is back in training. She has got her own way of doing things, but she has been a great little servant for us. She won at Windsor last year and run well in some of her other races.
“You would think she would get further, but she seems to be a mile and a quarter filly so we will start her over that and see how we go.
"I’ve always thought she would get further, but she didn’t look like she got a mile and a half at Newmarket on her last start.”
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