Royal Ascot Day 2 Preview
Credit: ASCOT, ENGLAND - JUNE 18: Prince William, Prince of Wales (L) with jockey William Buick who rode Ombudsman to victory in the Prince of Wales Stakes on day two of Royal Ascot at Ascot Racecourse on June 18, 2025 in Ascot, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images)
Day Two of the Royal Ascot carnival takes center stage with the running of the £1 million Prince of Wales’s Stakes, universally regarded as the week's premier event. This year’s renewal promises a mouthwatering clash featuring some of the highest-rated turf horses in the world, including Ombudsman, Daryz, and Minnie Hauk.
Beyond the glittering main event, the card features a spectacular lineup of highly competitive Group 2 contests, including the Queen Mary Stakes, the Queen’s Vase, and the Duke of Cambridge Stakes.
Race 4: Prince of Wales’s Stakes (Group 1)
Distance: 1 mile 2 furlongs (2,004m) | Conditions: 4yo+ | Post Time: 1:20am AEST
The 2026 Prince of Wales’s Stakes is the undisputed 'main event' of Day Two, setting the stage for a thrilling international showdown as English galloper Ombudsman takes on French champion Daryz and Ireland’s star filly, Minnie Hauk.
Ombudsman, trained by the father-son duo John and Thady Gosden, boasts a stellar record of eight wins and three seconds from 11 career starts. Two of his defeats have come at the hands of elite company, the champion three-year-old Delacroix and the reigning Horse of the Year, Calandagan. Ombudsman concluded last season as the joint second-highest rated horse in the world, sharing the honour with global stars Ka Ying Rising, Forever Young, Masquerade Ball, and Sovereignty. So far in 2026, the Godolphin star has maintained a formidable rating of 125, placing him equal-fifth globally. He won this exact race last year, defeating Anmaat and Royal Champion, but the competition this time around is undoubtedly stronger.
The French raider Daryz first burst onto the scene last year as a three-year-old and has since gone on to become one of the most formidable horses in the world. He has won three races in a row, all three being at Group 1 level including last year’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, narrowly defeating Minnie Hauk. He currently is rated the equal second best horse in the world with a rating of 126 (one more than Ombudsman). Crucially, Daryz has done the majority of his racing in France, his sole UK appearance resulted in his worst career performance, finishing behind Ombudsman in the Juddmonte International at York. Because both heavyweights handle good and soft ground equally well and are perfectly suited to the 2,004-meter trip, they are incredibly difficult to separate.
The Aidan O’Brien trained Minnie Hauk is the new darling of the turf, having won the Epsom Oaks. She suffered her first career loss when she was narrowly defeated by Daryz in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. While she made a successful seasonal reappearance in the Group 2 Mooresbridge Stakes, she disappointed last time out, finishing nine lengths off the pace in the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup. She possesses the class to threaten, but she will need to rediscover her absolute best to upstage Ombudsman and Daryz.
Selections:
#6. Ombudsman
#3. Daryz
#1. Almaqam
#7. Minnie Hauk
Race 3: Duke of Cambridge Stakes (Group 2)
Distance: 1 mile (1,602m) | Conditions: 4yo+F/M | Post Time: 12:40am AEST
A wide-open field of 15 runners lines up for this year’s Duke of Cambridge Stakes, in what the betting market predicts will be a fiercely contested affair. The Andrew Balding-trained Blue Bolt heads the market as the pre-race favourite following her victory in the Conqueror Fillies’ Stakes. In doing so, she defeated key rivals Kon Tiki and She's Perfect, both of whom reoppose here. With four wins and two placings from just seven career starts, Blue Bolt is a proven performer at this distance and grade, making her the horse to beat.
However, the undisputed class of the field is Friendly Soul. The John and Thady Gosden-trained mare looked like a superstar in the making back in 2024 when she captured the Group 1 Prix de l’Opéra at Longchamp. After missing the entire 2025 season, she made her long-awaited return in a Listed event at Haydock, where she unfortunately stepped in a hole and failed to finish. Fortunately, she emerged from that mishap without serious injury. Reports from the stable indicate she has come through the ordeal well, and the camp expects her to return to her brilliant best.
Selections:
#3. Blue Bolt
#6. Cathedral
#10. Friendly Soul
#5. Catalina Delcarpio
Outside of the two feature races, the card offers plenty of intrigue. The Queen Mary Stakes promises to be a blistering, wide-open sprint as a massive field of 27 two-year-old fillies hunt for crucial Black Type success. For the stamina purists, the Queen’s Vase offers a gruelling staying test over 2,847 meters for the three-year-old colts and geldings.
From an Aussie point of view, James McDonald and Mark Zahra will both have two rides each on Day 2. McDonald is booked to partner Altaregina in the Queen Mary Stakes before jumping aboard Archivist in Race 5. Meanwhile, Melbourne Cup-winning hoop Mark Zahra will partner Snellen in the Duke of Cambridge Stakes, and will later team up with trainer Harry Eustace aboard La Botte, also in Race 5.
