Belgian Bill, Annecdote triumph in Royal Ascot handicaps

Wiltshire trainer George Baker and Upper Lambourn conditioner Jonathan

Portman each earned their first Royal Ascot win on Wednesday when Belgian Bill

landed the

Royal Hunt Cup and Annecdote captured the

Sandringham Handicap.

Belgian Bill not only gave Baker his first Royal Ascot score, but continued

jockey James Doyle's remarkable success with a second Royal meeting victory just

35 minutes after his first aboard Al Kazeem in the Group 1 Princes of Wales's.

Baker was actually visiting the Royal Hunt Cup winner's enclosure

again after making an appearance seven years ago while working as a reporter for the defunct

Sportsman

newspaper. Now based at Manton, which is also home to his training colleague

Brian Meehan, his training career is proving rather more durable.

"I

was in this spot six or seven years ago -- but who won this race on that

occasion? I can't remember, but I'm sure I wrote a brilliant article about it!"

Baker laughed.

"He's been a fantastic old

handicapper and has taken us to all the right places," the trainer continued

about Belgian Bill. "You dream of winning a big

one, and while it's a cliche that is often said of these horses, he deserved to

win one.

"He's been around the world for us and a great standard

bearer for the yard. I've only been training for four and a half to five years

and to have a horse like this is what you dream of."

Doyle kept Belgian Bill held up toward the rear before allowing his mount to

close with two furlongs remaining in the mile contest. The duo just got up in

the final furlong to pull out the three-quarter length victory over Premio Loco.

"I was nervous when they split into two (Belgian Bill raced

with a small group on the far side), but at halfway the side-on shot showed we

were just ahead and still traveling," Baker said. "This horse just loves getting into a bit

of trouble in running and when he was stopped a couple of times that would have

suited him. A race like that for old horses is a bit of fun and they seem to

thrive on it.

"Being dropped in the handicap has

clearly helped and at a competitive level he had a big one in him. Where do we

go now? I don't care! This is a career highlight -- the move to Manton has taken

us to the next level and you want horses on the bigger stages. To do this at a

place like this is beyond your wildest, but it hasn't sunk in yet."

"He was well-fancied for this race last year --

he was nearly favorite -- and he has dropped down the weights a lot," Doyle said.

"He ran some

good races out in Dubai and I thought if he reproduced that form, we would have

a chance of getting in the frame.

"The race worked out perfectly. I was able to keep him

interested the whole way through, putting him in little gaps and helping him

travel. He quickened up well and I was a little bit unlucky because I got

stopped a little bit but I think he probably enjoyed it.

"I was happy with my draw. I know that the bulk of the

field merged over towards the stands' rail but I was happy where I was."

Portman will never forget

the filly Annecdote, who became his first Royal Ascot winner when taking the Sandringham

with Richard Kingscote aboard.

Annecdote prevailed in a tight

finish, beating Auction and Woodland Aria by a neck apiece. The winner is owned

by 94-year-old Tom Edwards and partners, who had turned down a number of offers

to buy the filly in order to be with her at Royal Ascot on Wednesday. The partners

include the Pertemps Group, which bought a quarter-share in the filly when she

was offered at a Starlight Foundation Charity auction last year.

"This feels rather nice. She's a very gutsy filly," said Portman, who moved

to his current yard last autumn. "When we looked at the program book back in February this

race was the plan, but she ran rather disappointingly at Goodwood first time out

this season over a mile, so we ditched the plan temporarily because it looked as

though she didn't stay. However, my horses were not quite right, she had a bad

draw and ran a bit freely.

"We took her to Newbury over seven furlongs and she scooted

up in a very good time looking as if she would stay so we said let's give the

Sandringham a go -- and here we are. It's extraordinary.

"When we first moved to Upper Lambourn we went about eight

months without a winner, but the idea of moving to a bigger yard was to raise

our profile and attract some more owners, and this hopefully might just help.

"We could go to Goodwood with her, but any thoughts I had

of going for a nice handicap have probably been blown."

Bet Horseracing Free Online at TwinSpires.com