Gstaad records sizzling Coventry Stakes success
OUT ON HIS OWN: Gstaad wins the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot in the hands of Ryan Moore. Picture: David Davies/PA
Gstaad blew the Coventry Stakes field apart to give Aidan O'Brien an 11th win in the Royal Ascot contest.
Sent off the 7-2 favourite and drawn on the near side, his group appeared to be behind for much of the way before Ryan Moore sent him towards the centre of the track with two furlongs to run.
It never really looked in doubt from there and he came home three lengths clear of 80-1 outsider Do Or Do Not on the far side, with Coppull third at 66-1.
In the opening race of the week, Docklands narrowly got the better of Rosallion in a thrilling climax to the Queen Anne Stakes.
O'Brien said: "I'm absolutely delighted and he looks a very good horse, doesn't he — you don't win the Coventry like that often and he was visually very good.
"We've always loved him and he's only had the one run, obviously, but has always worked like a good horse. This was the first horse Ryan rode when he came over in January or February time and he was highly thought of then.
"He's big, he's scopey and goes with his head down and is very genuine and he looks like he will get further than six. He has all the attributes.
"I'd imagine we would go for a Group 1 now and the Prix Morny is what they usually do after winning this."
The long-time favourite for this race was Gstaad's stablemate Albert Einstein before he suffered a setback earlier this month, ruling him out of the meeting."
Comparing his winner to the potential star confined to barracks at Ballydoyle, O'Brien added: "Albert Einstein was always something very different and a very quick horse, incredibly quick from the day we worked him.
"Gstaad is a big horse who travels well and with lots of speed. We always thought this was a top-tier horse alongside Albert, but your man was just so fast it was different."
In the opening race of the week, Docklands narrowly got the better of Rosallion in a thrilling climax to the Queen Anne Stakes.
A strong field of 10 runners went to post for the traditional Royal Ascot curtain-raiser, with the market dominated by the first four home in last month's Lockinge Stakes at Newbury.
Rosallion, who finished third at Newbury, was the 5-2 favourite to get back on the winning trail and looked set to oblige after being produced with a well-timed run by Sean Levey, but having been last out of the starting stalls before fighting his way to the front, Harry Eustace's 14-1 shot Docklands refused to bend under Australian jockey Mark Zahra and clung on by a nose.
Scottish challenger American Affair finished best to land the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot for Jim Goldie and Paul Mulrennan.
Successful in valuable handicaps at Musselburgh and York, the five-year-old was perhaps unfortunate not to finish closer than he did when fifth in the Temple Stakes at Haydock and was an 11-1 chance for this Group 1 debut.
Settled in midfield as the likes of Regional and Night Raider blazed a trail, American Affair was produced with his challenge inside the final two furlongs and found plenty for pressure to get the better of a protracted duel with Frost At Dawn by a neck.
