Royal Ascot Day Two Racing Tips – Back Rogue Millenium in The Duke Of Cambridgeshire Stakes

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I'm happy enough to come away with one winning selection yesterday. Charyn was a runaway winner and it was nice to be repaid after he let me down on his previous outing. He was tipped up at 7/2 and returned at 10/3 after remaining solid in the market.

We were left with three selections as Andesite was announced as a non-runner. Rogue Lightning ran a stinker while Unquestionable ran a blinder to finish fourth, but ended up a losing each-way selection, missing out on the placings by one.

Day two is upon us and I've again previewed the main four races of the card below. Fingers crossed we can land another winner on what looks like a hard day at the office for punters.

Ascot 2.30 – Queen Mary Stakes Group 2 – Kassaya 12/1 EW

The first class one of the day looks like a complete minefield on paper with most runners only one or two races into their career. Most have won on debut or their follow-up outings but after looking at the form of those towards the head of the market, there's no real substance to put forward a strong case for any of them.

Make Haste

Market leader Make Haste is the current 11/2 favourite, after his eye-catching debut performance at Naas. He travelled like a good thing on that occasion, winning by three and a quarter lengths. The time of that victory is up there with the best on offer, but, as previously mentioned, there is no real substance to the form. The second and fourth have yet to race since, while the remainder of the field have been soundly beaten on their following outings. Make Haste could bolt up and make me look silly but given the severe unknown throughout this field, I've opted to chance my arm and look elsewhere.

Kassaya

I finally decided on Andrew Balding's Kassaya, a recent winning selection for me on the MFT racing thread. At the current price of 12/1, she could represent some each-way value in this race.

She went for 1,000,000 guineas as a foal and is related to several high-class types, none more so than Chaldean, winner of the 2000 Guineas in 2023. I mentioned in previous write-ups that I was surprised to see Kassaya debut over 5f, given that Chaldean debuted over 6f before stepping up to her optimum trips of 7f and a mile. Trainer Andrew Balding stuck my selection to 5f for her second outing, which saw her take a step forward from debut and win.

I still believe she will be seen over further in time, as she travels like a horse who would appreciate it. Regardless, you have to trust the trainer's judgment, and his form so far this season tells you all you need to know.

My selection was beaten on debut by Eve Johnson's Pont Neuf. She's entered in the 6.15 at Royal Ascot tomorrow and is also priced up at 12/1. A big performance from Kassaya could see her price shorten, and that's something else to keep an eye out for tomorrow.

Ascot 3.05 – Queen’s Vase Group 2 – Illinois 9/4

This doesn't look like a strong renewal – the fact Aiden O'Brien runs four and most are at the head of the market tells you all you need to know about the strength of this race. Ryan Moore rarely gets it wrong and the fact he rides Illinois over the other three is a clue in itself. With that said, I've been on the receiving end of the second-string horse beating the first in recent times, but I'm hoping Ryan Moore has chosen correctly in this instance.

Although not winning in each of his last three starts, my selection brings the strongest piece of form to the table with his second-place effort at Lingfield behind Ambiente Friendly. That was a good effort given Ambiente Friendly went on to finish runner-up in this year's Derby, behind City Of Troy. He played a significant role in a powerful gallop on that occasion, which came close to breaking the course record. He has a beautiful movement in running and his long strides should play to his strengths at Ascot, along with a step up in trip which should also benefit him.

Ascot 3.45 – The Duke Of Cambridgeshire Stakes Group 2 – Rogue Millennium 3/1

The Duke of Cambridgeshire Stake is a Group 2 contested by fillies and mares. It looks like a great renewal, with the Irish and French bringing horses across to take on the UK bunch.

Laurel

Of the two top horses who share the highest rating in the field, you’d imagine that Laurel will go off as favourite for this race for Ryan Moore and the Gosden team. She is a very lightly raced mare who has Group 1 form from two years ago. With five runs to her name at the age of five, she is still unexposed. She hasn’t had a run since being comfortably beaten in the Lockinge (Group 1 at Newbury) last May. Back against her own sex, she should have a much better chance.

The form of the yard this season is a concern, and the time away from the track isn’t ideal, but she is 3/3 when making a reappearance (if you count her first run), so the freshness is surely a bonus. Despite her strong claims, I’m more than happy to take her on.

Rogue Millennium

The horse I like is Rogue Millennium. She is the joint highest-rated mare in the field, along with Laurel, and she won this race last year when trained by Tom Clover. She has since switched owners and yard for a big sum of money, and is now trained by Joseph O’Brien. She was well-fancied to win on her first start for O'Brien, but had a horrible run, getting no opening when she was travelling the best in the race.

Despite that being very frustrating, today’s race is definitely more important, and she will be primed for her second win in this race. She is drawn in Stall 2 which is very concerning as it can be a horrible place to be on the rail on the round course and with the recent run resulting in not getting a clear run, I’m getting a similar vibe for this race being drawn in two. However, you can’t take those things into consideration and should go with what you think is the best horse in the race and that’s what I think Rogue Millennium is.

Notable mentions

Other horses worth a mention include Sea The Lady who is making the trip over from France. I think the drop to a stiff mile will benefit her as she doesn’t seem to see out the longer trips that she has been campaigned over for the last year. Her best form has come on softer ground, so the quicker surface at Ascot might be against her, but watch the market.

If they were to go a good pace then horses who stay further like Running Lion could hit the frame. She is definitely better than what she showed at Epsom last time out. I don’t think she handled the track 18 days ago, but she has shown decent pieces of form over the years and should appreciate the quicker ground, being by Roaring Lion who relished a fast surface.

Ascot 4.25 – Prince Of Wales's Stakes Group 1 – Auguste Rodin – 13/8

The only Group 1 of day two of Royal Ascot is the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes which is over 1m 2f. All of the big hitters are turning up for this race, and all the racing purists will be extremely happy with the lineup we’ve got for this year’s renewal.

Auguste Rodin

It’s probably best to start off with my selection, Auguste Rodin. Considering this horse is an absolute top-class horse, he doesn’t half chuck in some stinkers along the way. He is a multiple Group 1 winner as a 2yo and a 3yo, but he has also finished 12th/14 in the 2000 Guineas, as well as last of 12 at Meydan in the Sheema Classic in March earlier this year.

It seems a very hard task to know when the real Auguste Rodin will turn up, and for that reason, you’d probably want decent odds attached to him when having a bet. Unfortunately, he is the highest-rated horse in the race and is the best horse on his day, so the odds are never going to be too big.

I think quick ground is what he relishes, and the sub-par performances have generally been on slower surfaces. He won the Derby on good to firm ground, and the form looks solid with King Of Steel winning a Group 1 last year and White Birch beating Auguste Rodin last time out in Ireland. I get the impression Ryan isn’t going to mess around, and if there is a chance to go forward, he will do so.

The French favourites

The French send over four horses, of which three seem to have a decent chance, as well as what appears to be a pacemaker for Blue Rose Cen, who was a high-performing 2yo and continued to do well as a 3yo, but perhaps not as well as we all expected. She is probably not up to it against some top-class horses and it would be a shock to see her win this, in my opinion.

The main French chance is the P Cottier runner, Horizon Dore, who possesses a good turn of foot, so the quick ground might not hinder his chances despite his form coming on a slower surface. If he is ridden with restraint like he normally is, that could be his downfall.

Inspiral

It's interesting to see Inspiral at this trip as she has been a fantastic mare over a mile, and is known for her speed, so this trip on a stiff track does raise eyebrows. She won at the Breeder’s Cup over 10f last November, but that is at Santa Anita which is a very tight track and suits speedy horses, so if there was ever a track she was going to enjoy today’s trip, it was going to be there.

Her return to action in Lockinge was horrendous, she was never at the races, and given she has a good record when fresh, that would be a huge concern. I think it seems a bit of desperation to send her for this trip as she is owned by the same connections of Audience who ran in the opener on Day 1, so they would’ve wanted to split the pair instead of going against each other.

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