'They've always liked him at Freemason Lodge - we're hopeful for him'

3.35 Newmarket
Princess Of Wales's Tattersalls Stakes (Group 2) | 3yo+ | 1m4f | ITV3/RTV

Highest Ground bids to bounce back from the disappointment of Royal Ascot in the Princess Of Wales's Tattersalls Stakes, which Sir Michael Stoute has won a record nine times since 1986.

The four-year-old finished ninth on soft ground in the Hardwicke Stakes last month and the form of the race was given a boost when runner-up Broome won the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud last week.

Owned by the Niarchos family, Highest Ground was beaten by a neck in last year's Dante Stakes. He has won three times from seven starts including a dominant success on his debut at Leicester in 2019.

"Royal Ascot was a bit of a disappointment," said Alan Cooper, racing manager to the Niarchos Family. "Oisin [Murphy] felt he didn't get a grip of the track on that ground so hopefully we'll have good ground.

Highest Ground (right) was beaten by a neck by Thunderous (left) in the 2020 Dante StakesCredit: Dan Abraham/Pool via Getty Images

"They've always liked him at Freemason Lodge and if he gets the right ground we're hopeful he can show his true colours in a very competitive race – he's going to have to put his best foot forward.

"He's the lowest-rated runner in the field but he deserves to take his chance. He was second in the Dante last year and is a late-maturing type. Hopefully he can live up to his reputation in part on Thursday."

Highest Ground renews rivalry with Sir Ron Priestley, who finished seventh at Royal Ascot, in a quality five-runner field, which also includes Coronation Cup runner-up Al Aasy, Bangkok and Star Safari.

What they say

William Haggas, trainer of Al Aasy
He's in good form after Epsom and is ready to race again. It was a good run to finish second in the Coronation Cup and I hope he can prove that at Newmarket. Hopefully the ground won't be too firm but it shouldn't be. We're expecting lovely summer ground.

Alastair Donald, racing manager to King Power, owners of Bangkok
We're hoping the ground stays quick for him and not too much rain arrives. He's stepping up to a mile and a half, which we've been keen to do for a while. It's a tough, small field but it will be interesting to see him over the trip and he should run a good race.

Charlie Appleby, trainer of Star Safari
Star Safari put up some progressive performances in Dubai earlier in the year, winning the Dubai Millennium Stakes and running well in the Dubai Sheema Classic. We felt that this was a nice starting point for him ahead of some potential targets in Europe.

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