Hukum continues King George boom period with high-class performance in battle of strong stayers

Saturday saw a strong running of the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, featuring seven Group 1 winners and the same number with pre-race Racing Post Ratings in excess of 120.

In terms of strength in depth, the race is going through something of a boom period. The last four years have very much been a case of quality over quantity, this the largest field since Enable’s win in 2019, but each year since has seen an average pre-race RPR of more than 121.

This year Emily Upjohn and Auguste Rodin were obvious disappointments, while Luxembourg and Pyledriver weren't at their best, but Hukum and Westover served up a thrilling finish and the winner’s performance stacks up well against recent history, an RPR of 128 placing him just behind Poet’s Word (129) as the best recent older horse winner.