Solow, Able Friend square off in Queen Anne as Royal Ascot begins

Solow, Able Friend square off in Queen Anne as Royal Ascot

begins

"Able Friend is one of the best horses we have ever trained in Hong Kong,"

commented assistant trainer George Moore. "We had him from when he was a

yearling and he has such a great temperament. When you take him out on the track

in the mornings, he looks around and takes everything in. He has pretty much the

perfect mentality for a racehorse. He is not usually the type of horse you would

pick out at the sales, as he is a big, gross horse, but he was always very

athletic and looked great from behind. He traveled really well from Hong Kong

and has proven himself the best miler there.

"With our season closing July, Royal Ascot comes at the perfect time to prove

himself the best horse in the world, ratings wise. I don't think going over the

straight mile at Ascot will be an issue, as he has a very big stride on him and

good-to-firm ground will suit. In Hong Kong, Able Friend has such a big

following that he really is Hong Kong's horse. I hope he can do everyone proud."

Waiting in the wings should either of those two fluff their lines, is the

Richard Hannon-trained pair Night of Thunder (Dubawi) and Toormore (Arakan), who

represent a stable successful three times in the last six renewals, including

last year with Toronado. Night of Thunder, who captured last term's Two Thousand

Guineas (Eng-G1) before running second to Guineas runner-up Kingman in the St

James's Palace S. (Eng-G1) here, regained the winning thread and provided

Godolphin with an immediate return on investment in the May 16 Lockinge S.

(Eng-G1) at Newbury, besting Toormore in snug fashion. The stablemates have met

on four prior occasions with Night of Thunder superior in each.

"Able Friend and Solow stand in our way and they are two very good horses,

so, while we went there last year expecting Toronado to win, this time around we

are hoping more than expecting," Hannon said. "Whatever their fate here, I feel

that both will improve on what they did at Newbury, though to win they will

probably have to.

"We think Night of Thunder will come on between four and five pounds as he

did so well physically through the winter. He was in front plenty soon enough in

the Lockinge, but James Doyle knows him better now and he did a smashing piece

of work last Tuesday with Ivawood (Zebedee). Remember, he is the only horse to

have ever beaten Kingman, so don't underestimate him. However, we feel that

Toormore needed his Newbury run more than Night of Thunder, so he too has to go

there with a solid chance. He is looking and moving great again now and we are

happy with both of them."

The last time the English and French Guineas winners met in this was in 2008,

when the Newmarket hero Henrythenavigator prevailed for Ballydoyle and Longchamp

victor Falco flopped. Despite the obvious merit of his all-the-way three-length

defeat of his Prix du Jockey Club (Fr-G1)-winning stable companion New Bay

(Dubawi) in the May 10 Poule d'Essai des Poulains (Fr-G1), Make Believe (Makfi)

still has something to find to test Gleneagles. The forward-going style of

Prince Faisal's bay even promises to set the race up perfectly for his Irish

contemporary, leaving Olivier Peslier with a tactical dilemma.

"He does not need to lead, he could come from behind, too -- we will just see

how the race develops and I will leave that to his jockey," trainer Andre Fabre

explained. "Make Believe has done well since making all the running in the Poule

d'Essai des Poulains, though I have not done much work with him as he is quite a

light horse. Fast ground would not be a real concern for him as Ascot always

does a good job with the ground and it was pretty fast when he won the Poulains,

but a drop of rain would be welcome.

"I see Make Believe as a real miler and I expect him to remain at this

distance for the rest of the season. I was very impressed with Gleneagles in the

Two Thousand Guineas; impressed with his conformation, with his action and with

his attitude. He looks something special and will be difficult to beat."

Sir Michael Stoute has not supplied the winner of this since Shaadi gave him

his sole success in 1989 and looks to the unbeaten Consort (Lope de Vega) to end

the drought. Still totally unexposed, the gray showed the kind of acceleration

which marks out the really talented when scoring on his comeback in Sundown's

Heron S. over this trip May 28. Immediately afterwards, his trainer suggested it

was either this test or the Tercentenary (Eng-G3), so the home signs have

obviously been significant for him to enter the deep end.

"The interesting thing about Consort is he is physically changing all the

time," Highclere's Harry Herbert said. "He has come out of the race at Sandown

and looks a different horse. His work coming into this has been really good. He

was quite a lazy worker last year, but this year he is really beginning to

sparkle on the gallops. His last piece of work was highly impressive and that is

what made Sir Michael decide to have a crack at the St James's Palace S.

"He is bred to go at least a mile and a quarter, but he has got a good turn

of foot and does not lack speed. I am a massive fan of Gleneagles and it is a

privilege to have a horse capable of competing against him. It will be a big

task for Consort, but he goes into the race as a fresh and improving horse and

it will be great for the owners to see just what sort of horse they have got."

Godolphin rely on last year's Dewhurst S. (Eng-G1) winner Belardo (Lope de

Vega), who could not get past Gleneagles when fourth on a surface which favored

him in the Irish Guineas, and the darker Latharnach (Iffraaj). The latter was

second in the King Charles II S. over seven furlongs at Newmarket on his

three-year-old bow May 16 and needs to have upwards of a stone in hand to figure

here.

Solario S. (Eng-G3) winner Aktabantay (Oasis Dream) is another facing a tough

task on his seasonal bow, having last been seen finishing sixth behind

Gleneagles and company in the Jean-Luc Lagardere. Trainer Hugo Palmer is hopeful

he can hold his own.

"He looks fantastic, he hasn't let me down once this year in any of his

work," he commented. "Since we got him back on track, he's had a faultless

preparation which is what you need for these big races. It's the only

opportunity the horse will have to run in the Group 1 over a mile against his

own generation in this country."

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