Wicklow disappoints as Fox takes the last Oriental Fox was an easy winner of the Queen Alexandra Stakes as this year's Royal Ascot meeting was brought to a close. Wicklow Brave was sent off a heavily-backed favourite to give Willie Mullins and Ryan Moore another winner, yet despite travelling powerfully into the straight, he could only manage fourth. Mark Johnston, who saddled Buratino to win the Coventry Stakes earlier in the week, has a good record in the staying contests at the meeting but this was his first winner in the two-mile-five-furlong marathon. Sent off at 4-1, Oriental Fox sprinted clear on his first run of the season to beat Taws by seven lengths with Teak in third. Having finished fifth in the Gold Cup 12 months ago, he certainly had the class to win a race of this nature. It was a first winner of the week for jockey Joe Fanning. "He's a very good horse on his day. He travelled well and he has a good turn of foot for a staying horse. It's great to have a winner here, it's really good," said Fanning. "He's a proper hold-up horse but for a stayer he has a real turn of foot. "I'm pleased for his owner, Markus Graff, as he's had a few problems this horse." Johnston said: "That was incredible, we didn't expect it as we rushed him here and he hasn't been working well, he's overweight. "Markus suggested a small race somewhere, but there wasn't one so we came here. "He was 10 kilos above his last winning weight and I thought he needed a bit more time but the race looked so good, there really was no other alternative. "The owner said you can run him in this as long as you don't run him in the Northumberland Plate as well but we might have to have a talk about that now!" Oriental Fox also broke the track record of Bergo by two seconds.
