Our star columnist takes us through his team for the second day of Royal Ascot, including two-year-old filly Kodyanna.
Were double-handed in Wednesday’s Queen Mary Stakes.
We were very pleased with Kodyanna in the Hilary Needler at Beverley last time. We trained her sister, Darkanna, who took some getting going, but this filly was very professional the other day and there’s more to come from here. She's well drawn – next to the American filly Chelsea Cloisters who I’m told is very good.
We’ll get a good tow into the race from her – we probably won’t catch her but we'll get a good lead! Joking apart I really like Kodyanna and am looking forward to running her.
Red Balloons has got to really step up on what she’s done so far but was unlucky not to win a nice race at Musselburgh on Derby day, where she was stopped three times, and had she won there we’d have come here so she deserves to run. She’s a filly with plenty of pace but whether she’s up to this we’ll find out.
Finally Gabrial runs in the Royal Hunt Cup. At the age of nine he is officially 4lb well in here – which you could argue is the training performance of my career! He’s in on his old mark having been put up for finishing second in the Diomed at Epsom.
Frankie Dettori who rode him there is again on board and he gets a good tune out of him. He’s ridden him three times and been second on each occasion in good races and if they click again he’ll run well. He’s an absolute star this horse.
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