Matt Brocklebank provides a horse-by-horse guide to Saturday's big race - the King George Vi And Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes at Ascot.
King George Vi And Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes
- When: 4.10 Saturday July 26
- Where: Ascot Racecourse
- First prize: £850,650
- Going: Good
- TV: ITV1 & Sky Sports Racing (Sky 415)
CALANDAGAN (Francis Graffard)
Model of consistency for connections, finishing first or second in 10 starts since his debut outing a couple of summers ago. A striking winner of the King Edward VII Stakes over this course and distance as a three-year-old last year, he went on to fill the runner-up spot on four straight Group 1s before opening his top-class account in last month’s Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud. Outfought by Jan Brueghel in the Coronation Cup prior to that but only half a length in it and every chance he’s closely involved again.
CONTINUOUS (Aidan O’Brien)
St Leger winner from 2023 is now seemingly utilised as a pace-maker for more esteemed stablemates and ended up last of eight when 100/1 in last month’s Prince of Wales’s Stakes. Great test of stamina will help but can’t be considered as a likely player for all that his participation is all but confirmed.
JAN BRUEGHEL (Aidan O’Brien)
Had made six racecourse appearances and the sole defeat came when looking particularly rusty in a Curragh Group 3 on his seasonal debut in April. Consigned that run to the past when defeating odds-on favourite Calandagan back from 55 days away in last month’s Coronation Cup and he’s still entitled to be reaching full fitness and maturity having been a slow burner en route to winning last year’s Leger. It’s going to take a tough and classy performance to lower his colours.
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REBEL’S ROMANCE (Charlie Appleby)
On the subject of tough and classy, Godolphin’s ace globetrotter has retained every ounce of enthusiasm as a seven-year-old this season, returning to the UK with wins in the Yorkshire Cup and Hardwicke Stakes most recently. Ascot form got a timely boost by runner-up Al Riffa at the Curragh over the weekend and he can be relied upon to run another bold race if the ground remains good or quicker.
KALPANA (Andrew Balding)
No great secret that a shot at the Arc de Triomphe has been top of her agenda since ending last year on a Champions Day high at this venue, and her training looks to have been steadily turning the screws so far this campaign. Two highly creditable runs in 10-furlong Group 1s should have brought her to the boil in time for this step back up in trip and any ease underfoot will probably play more to her strengths than the likes of Jan Brueghel.
Verdict
Despite the small field it should still be an interesting race, featuring a rematch from the Coronation Cup between JAN BRUEGHEL and Calandagan. The French horse, a subsequent Group 1 winner on home soil, will be better suited to a return to Ascot where he was so impressive at last year's Royal meeting, but the Ballydoyle four-year-old looks to be going from strength to strength and assuming Continuous puts some pace into the race from an early stage, Jan Brueghel is going to take plenty of passing once again.
Rebel's Romance won't be a pushover but the greatest threat to the selection could be presented by Andrew Balding's mare Kalpana, who couldn't quite give 12lb to Whirl in last month's Pretty Polly but looks to be building up to an even bigger performance back over 12 furlongs and at Ascot where she was deadly, albeit against her own sex, on Champions Day last autumn.
Updated at 1040 BST on 24/07/25
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