Venetian Sun fends off Royal Fixation

Ed Walker on plans for Royal Fixation, Almaqam and Do Or Do Not

By David Ord

Horse Racing

Tue July 15, 2025 · 5M ago

Ed Walker is targeting the Sky Bet Lowther Stakes at York with Royal Fixation.

He holds the daughter of Palace Pier in very high regard and she went a long way towards justifying the reputation when forcing odds-on favourite Venetian Sun to pull out all the stops in the Duchess Of Cambridge Stakes at Newmarket last week. A winner on her debut at Thirsk, Royal Fixation finished fast and late under William Buck to get to within a diminishing neck of her rival.

“I’d imagine she’ll go straight to the Lowther,” Walker told Tuesday’s Nick Luck Daily Podcast.

“We’ve always held her in very high regard and it was no surprise to us that she ran so well. Realistically we probably weren’t expecting to get that close to Karl’s filly but she’s a very exciting filly, very talented and very quick and I thinks she has a bright future. The Lowther looks ideal for her.”

Walker will continue to aim high with Do Or Do Not who was another to run a big race at Headquarters, finishing second to Zavateri in the July Stakes. He’s still to win a race in four attempts but was also second in the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot and the trainer said: “We’ll probably end up at Kempton in November with a 110-rated maiden but we’ll do our best to try and win a stakes race with him! I think he’ll probably end up in the Vintage I suspect, he looks to be crying out to go a bit further and I think he’ll go to Goodwood.”

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Stablemate Mgheera is set to go on her travels to Ireland this weekend for a run in the Barberstown Castle Sapphire Stakes. It will be her first start since winning the Temple Stakes after being a late absentee from the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot.

“She hasn’t run since Haydock with the blip at Ascot and it’s a long wait until the Nunthorpe. We feel she could do with having a run and we think the race will suit. It will be a good test to see if the Flying Five is an option later in the year.”

However stable star Almaqam looks set to be freshened up for an autumn campaign with the weather forecasts suggesting he won’t get his ground in next week’s King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.

“We’re just waiting, it’s really frustrating. There are options for him next weekend in Germany and here, but I think we’re probably just going to take out foot off the gas a bit and spare him for the autumn," Walker continued.

“It’s been enormously frustrating but there’s just no rain in sight, bar a few showers this week and I don’t think they’re anything significant.”