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Royal Ascot 2023 Guide: All you need to know

Stradivarius Ascot Gold Cup 2020

Royal Ascot 2023 is nearly upon us and we have put together an all you need to know guide to help you through the five-day showpiece event of British Flat racing.

Dating back hundreds of years, Royal Ascot is a celebration of all thing’s pageantry and racing, it’s a mainstay of the racing calendar and is certainly one to savour.

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What is Royal Ascot?

Royal Ascot is the biggest Flat racing festival in the calendar, which takes place over five days in June each year.

Growing out of the first four-day annual meeting at Ascot in 1768, and with the introduction of certain races such as the Gold Cup, the meeting has since developed into what we know today as Royal Ascot.

Until 1939, Royal Ascot was the only meeting to be held at the racecourse and every year the event only grows in popularity.

It is known as the Royal meeting as before the start of each of the five days, members of the Royal family usually arrive on course by horse drawn carriage down the centre of the track.

The Queen was a huge supporter of Royal Ascot and horse racing in general and this year will mark the first Royal Ascot for King Charles III.

Where does Royal Ascot take place?

Royal Ascot takes place at Ascot Racecourse in Berkshire.

When does Royal Ascot take place?

This year, Royal Ascot will be held between Tuesday 20th and Saturday 24th June with a feature race held daily. The main event of the week is the Group One Ascot Gold Cup, run on Thursday 22nd June.

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Royal Ascot schedule

Tuesday 20th June

2:30pm The Queen Anne Stakes (Group 1)

3:05pm The Coventry Stakes (Group 2)

3:40pm The King’s Stand Stakes (Group 1)

4:20pm The St James’s Palace Stakes (Group 1)

5:00pm The Ascot Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

5:35pm The Wolferton Stakes (Listed)

6:10pm The Copper Horse Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

Wednesday 21st June

2:30pm The Queen Mary Stakes (Group 2)

3:05pm The Kensington Palace Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

3:40pm The Duke of Cambridge Stakes (Group 2)

4:20pm The Prince of Wales’s Stakes (Group 1)

5:00pm The Royal Hunt Cup (Heritage Handicap) (Class 2)

5:35pm The Queen’s Vase (Group 2)

6:10pm The Windsor Castle Stakes (Listed)

Thursday 22nd June

2:30pm The Norfolk Stakes (Group 2)

3:05pm The King George V Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

3:40pm The Ribblesdale Stakes (Group 2)

4:20pm The Gold Cup (Group 1)

5:00pm The Britannia Stakes (Heritage Handicap) (Class 2)

5:35pm The Hampton Court Stakes (Group 3)

6:10pm The Buckingham Palace Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

Friday 23rd June

2:30pm The Albany Stakes (Group 3)

3:05pm The Commonwealth Cup (Group 1)

3:40pm The Duke of Edinburgh Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

4:20pm The Coronation Stakes (Group 1)

5:00pm The Sandringham Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

5:35pm The King Edward VII Stakes (Group 2)

6:10pm The Palace of Holyroodhouse Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

Saturday 24th June

2:30pm The Chesham Stakes (Listed)

3:05pm The Jersey Stakes (Group 3)

3:40pm The Hardwicke Stakes (Group 2)

4:20pm The Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes (Group 1)

5:00pm The Wokingham Stakes (Heritage Handicap) (Class 2)

5:35pm The Golden Gates Stakes (Handicap) (Class 2)

6:10pm The Queen Alexandra Stakes (Conditions) (Class 2)

Royal Ascot prize money

One of the reasons for Royal Ascot’s popularity is that it attracts the best in the equine world and not just for the royal connections, the prize money on offer over the week is some of the best in the world.

This year, the prize money up for grabs at Royal Ascot will total nearly £10 million over the course of the meeting, with each race being worth in excess of £100,000.

The opening day of the meeting features three Group One races and prize money across a the day will top £2.4 million.

Some of the biggest beneficiaries are the winners of the newly named Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes and The Prince of Wales’s Stakes, where there will be a total of £1 million up for grabs in each race.

Royal Ascot runners

The combination of prize money, prestige, and breeding is what ultimately brings the best horse from around the world to Royal Ascot and this year is no different.

Last year a host of international runners from Ireland, France, Australia, the US and Japan lined up at Royal Ascot and more can be expected to make the trip this year.

To be sure you have the current and up to date information it’s imperative to have a look at a Royal Ascot race card closer to the time.

Royal Ascot latest odds

On day one, Charlie Appleby’s recent Lockinge winner, Modern Games, heads the market for the opening Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at 7/4.

The King’s Stand, a 5f dash on the opening day, has a more open look to it, with last season’s Nunthorpe winner Highfield Princess the current favourite at 3/1, from the Australian-trained Coolangatta at 5/1.

The final Group 1 on the opening day could witness a clash between the 2000 Guineas winner Chaldean (6/4) and Irish 2000 Guineas winner Paddington (5/2).

The Prince Of Wales’ Stakes is the feature race on day two, and is sure to be a fascinating event, with at the time of writing, Luxembourg and Adayar sharing favouritism at 7/2 from Sir Michael Stoute’s pair Bay Bridge and Desert Crown at 9/2.

Last season’s St Leger winner, Eldar Eldarov (11/4), is the current Gold Cup favourite from Coltrane at 3/1, with 2021 winner Subjectivist a 14/1 chance to become the 22nd horse to win multiple Gold Cups.

Friday’s card includes the Coronation Stakes and Commonwealth Cup, both Group One contests. Aidan O’Brien’s Little Big Bear bounced back from his flop in the 2000 Guineas to win the Group 2 Sandy Lane at Haydock recently and with sprinting looking like his discipline, he’s current 7/4 favourite for the Commonwealth Cup.

Irish 1000 Guineas winner, Tahiyra (6/4), could be one of the horses of the season and she is likely to be a warm order in the Coronation Stakes to reverse English 1000 Guineas form with Mawj (5/2).

The £1 million Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes takes centre stage on the final day. Last year the race was won by Australian sprinter Nature Strip, and another Australian-trained horse, Artorius, is prominent in the betting at 5/1. It’s John Quinn’s wondermare Highfield Princess that just shades favouritism though at 9/2.

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