Five international stars Ascot would love to lure for royal meeting

The international participation at Royal Ascot has become one of the major draws in recent years. Here we look at some of the most wanted overseas runners and whether they might make the journey over.

Horse: Almond Eye
Race: Prince of Wales’s Stakes
Blockbuster rating (out of five): *****
Likelihood rating: *

The four-year-old won the fillies’ Triple Crown in Japan last year – her success in the Shuka Sho to complete the treble was quite outstanding – and topped that up with a record-breaking win in the Japan Cup.

The Dubai Turf is her first reported target, while her big aim is the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. Booking a Eurostar ticket now would be highly recommended.

Beauty Generation: owners targeting races at home in Hong KongCredit: Masakazu Takahashi

Horse: Beauty Generation
Race: Queen Anne Stakes
Blockbuster rating: ****
Likelihood rating: *

The prospect of such a superstar lining up in the first race of the royal meeting is a tantalising prospect, yet there is little chance that it will happen – this year, anyway.

Owner Patrick Kwok and his family have their eyes set on making Beauty Generation the highest-earning horse in Hong Kong history with the Yasuda Kinen in Japan on June 3 reportedly the overseas target for the six-year-old.

Newspaperofrecord: Royal Ascot mooted after Breeders' Cup winCredit: Edward Whitaker

Horse: Newspaperofrecord
Race: Coronation Stakes
Blockbuster rating: ****
Likelihood rating: ***

Newspaperofrecord produced one of the performances of the Breeders’ Cup to win the Juvenile Fillies Turf and would have a serious chance of landing the 1,000 Guineas if connections fancied it.

However, Royal Ascot looks more likely with a trip to Britain in the summer put forward as a definite possibility in the aftermath of the filly’s victory at Churchill Downs.

Horse: The Autumn Sun
Race: Diamond Jubilee or Queen Anne
Blockbuster rating: ***
Likelihood rating: ****

He may not be the Chris Waller horse everyone wants to see at Royal Ascot but, with Winx going nowhere, he is certainly the most likely.

Waller said the trip would be seriously discussed with the horse’s owners, with the bigger issue seemingly being which race he heads for rather than the travelling for the dual Group 1 winner.

The Mackem Bullet (striped cap): likely to join Wesley Ward's Ascot teamCredit: Mark Cranham (racingpost.com/photos)

Horse: The Mackem Bullet
Race: Commonwealth Cup
Blockbuster rating: **
Likelihood rating: *****

A homecoming for the former Brian Ellison-trained filly must be viewed as highly likely after she was transferred to the stable of Royal Ascot-loving trainer Wesley Ward.

The American’s exploits at the meeting are well known, and he has increasingly been bringing over plenty of older horses to supplement his rocket-powered juveniles.

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