Ascot Champions’ Day brings down the curtain on a vintage season

Saturday 19th October is Qipco British Champions Day at Ascot when four Group 1 contests will be up for decision on the final day of the British Flat season.

With £4.2 million in prizemoney spread across the six race card the competition will once again be fierce for the ninth running of the event.

The action begins with the Group 2 Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup when the remarkable Stradivarius will be expected to extend his unbeaten run to eleven straight races with back-to-back victories in this two mile contest.

The five-year-old son of Sea The Stars is currently 4/7 favourite with the bookmakers and you can see all the Ascot betting online here.

Sands Of Mali caused a 28/1 shock in the Group 1 Champions Sprint last year when beating Harry Angel and there is an open look to the contest again this time with July Cup winner Ten Sovereigns heading to Australia to contest the Everest later month.

Advertise and Hello Youmzain are vying for favouritism but Aidan O’Brien could well have a say in the outcome if his recent Flying Five Stakes winner Fairyland turns up.

O’Brien won the British Champions Fillies And Mares race last year with Magical and that filly could well defend her crown if coming out of Sunday’s Prix de l’Arc de Tripomphe in good form.

Other contenders for the Fillies And mares race include two Irish Classic winners, The John Gosden trained Star Catcher which win the Irish Oaks and recent Irish St Leger winner Search For A Song from the Dermot Weld yard.

The Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, a Group 1 race over one mile, provided a thrilling finish last year when Roaring Lion won in a close fought affair. This year’s market received a big shake up with the runaway victory of Benbatl in a Group 2 contest last week at Newmarket.

That was the Godolphin owned Benbatl’s first outing since chasing home Winx in Australia last October and he is now 4/1 clear favourite for the Ascot race.

Benbatl also has the option to run in the big one, the Qipco Champion Stakes, on the same card where he could meet the likes of Japan, Magical or even Enable depending on how they come out of their assignments in France this weekend.

The afternoon is rounded off with the Balmoral Handicap over one mile which will be a wide open big field affair with £250,000 in prizemoney. There have been well-backed winners of this race in each of the last two years so watch out for market moves closer to the day.