Andrew Balding talks Graham Clark through his 25-strong team for Royal Ascot next week.
When it comes to being well represented at Royal Ascot this year, few will be able to match the firepower trainer Andrew Balding has at his disposal.
With 11 winners at Flat racing’s early summer highlight to his name, the Kingsclere handler is no stranger to tasting success at a meeting which comes at a pivotal point in the calendar.
However, the last two years have seen the Classic-winning trainer draw blanks at the meeting with his last success there coming in the 2022 Ascot Stakes courtesy of Coltrane.
But armed with a team in excess of 25 horses, spread out across the various divisions, the chances of Balding adding winner number 12 at the meeting to his CV appear strong.
He said: “We didn’t get a winner last year so it was disappointing, but we had a few placed horses that ran well. It is very competitive every year and it doesn't get any easier. I think any trainer, however big their string is, will say they are probably just happy getting one winner and anything else is a bonus.
“I think we are on par with the last couple of years in terms of the depth of the squad going there, but we just need that bit of luck. I think everything we are sending there we can make a case for and that is the most important thing for us.”
