Big guns stand ground for Prince of Wales’s showdown

Adayar, Luxembourg and Bay Bridge will clash in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot on Wednesday.

A field of six line up in the day two feature, which promises to be a mouthwatering affair despite the enforced absence of last year’s Derby winner Desert Crown.

Winner of the Epsom Classic himself in 2021, the Charlie Appleby-trained Adayar looked as good as ever on his return in the Gordon Richards Stakes at Newmarket.

Aidan O’Brien’s Luxembourg, meanwhile, was an all-the-way winner from Sir Michael Stoute’s Bay Bridge – who beat Adayar in the Champion Stakes at Ascot – in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh.

Born To Rock (Jane Chapple-Hyam) and Beautiful Diamond (Karl Burke) head the market for the Queen Mary, which also features intriguing American challengers in the shape of Bundchen (Wesley Ward) and Crimson Advocate (George Weaver).

In the Royal Hunt Cup, Frankie Dettori will carry the silks of the King and Queen aboard the John and Thady Gosden-trained Reach For The Moon.

Although Laurel was not declared for the Duke of Cambridge Stakes, it could still be a big day for the Gosdens and Dettori, as they also have Gregory in the 14-strong Queen’s Vase – where the Stoute-trained Circle Of Fire is the royal representative with Richard Kingscote in the saddle.