Rite Of Passage wins Ascot Gold Cup Dermot Weld's dual-purpose performer Rite Of Passage claimed Group One glory in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot. The six-year-old, winner of his two previous starts on the Flat including the November Handicap at Leopardstown, was last seen finishing third in the Neptune Investment Management Novices' Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival. Sent off at 20-1 in the hands of Pat Smullen, the six-year-old came to challenge Age Of Aquarius halfway up the straight and the pair settled down to fight it out. The latter was brave having taken up the running on the turn for home, but Rite Of Passage wore him down to score by a neck in a course record time. The Sir Michael Stoute-trained Ask was sent off a well-supported 11-4 favourite but having travelled well to the turn for home, his stamina appeared to give way in this gruelling two-and-a-half-mile contest. Another leading fancy was Yorkshire Cup winner Manifest, trained by five-time Gold Cup-winning trainer Henry Cecil, but he too had nothing left a long way from home. Purple Moon stayed on strongly in the straight to claim minor honours in third. Weld said: "The plan was hatched a long time ago. It's a race I've always wanted to win and two previous runners, Vinnie Roe and Vintage Crop, finished second so I thought it could be third time lucky. "We had a good draw and obviously we discussed it with Pat, he's a world class rider and I totally left the decisions to Pat how to ride the horse." Smullen said: "I was very happy with how the race unfolded. I was very confident he would stay but he's got speed as well. I got a lovely position just behind the leaders all the way round and got the gap when I needed. "He quickened up well and it takes a very good horse to win how he did. "Johnny (Murtagh, rider of the runner-up) is not an easy man to get the better of, so it's always nice when you beat him. "It was a tremendous race and a great spectacle and I'm just pleased we came out on top of it." The winner was given a 10-1 quote for the Melbourne Cup by William Hill, a race Weld has won twice before. "I think I had the favourite for that race before today in Profound Beauty, she also beat Age Of Aquarius," added Weld. "It's a long way away but it's always been a target of mine for this horse as well." Age Of Aquarius' part-owner Derrick Smith said: "We couldn't be more happy with him. "He ran very respectably - I thought he was going to get swamped a furlong out but he kept going and stayed every yard. "He was beaten by a better horse on the day. You have to be delighted, although you are obviously disappointed to only just get beaten."
