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'Key Horse' making the bookies 'sweat' on day 2 of Royal Ascot

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© Healy Racing Photos
Charles Darwin is making the bookies "sweat" ahead of day three of Royal Ascot, according to William Hill.
The Aidan O'Brien horse is the 4/6 favourite for the opening race, the Norfolk Stakes (2.30).
A win for O'Brien would see him extend his record as the most successful trainer in the history of Royal Ascot to 94.
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Spokesperson for William Hill, Lee Phelps, said: "Day Three of Royal Ascot is here and the 30-degree heat is not the only thing making us sweat.
"Charles Darwin is a hot 4/6 favourite in the opening Norfolk Stakes, and he really is the key horse today. If he goes in for Aidan O’Brien, there could be plenty of money rolling onto the remaining Ryan Moore rides given his strong book this afternoon.
"Elsewhere, Propose, an O’Brien second string in the King George V, is attracting good each-way money, and he has halved into 10/1 from 20s.
"Interestingly in the Gold Cup, it’s Candelari who’s receiving strong support. The French raider is a strong 9/4 chance now from 10/3, and we want him and Illinois beat come race-time."
2.305f. 15 Declared.
Norfolk Stakes (Group 2) (Class 1 ) of £150,000.00 2-y-o
- Formscan
- Race Info
1st - €85,065.00 2nd - €32,250.00 3rd - €16,140.00 4th - €8,040.00 5th - €4,035.00 6th - €2,025.00 Going - Good to Firm.
Formscan - Not one of the last 10 favourites managed to win this race, which doesn't bode well for Charles Darwin, who topped many ante post betting lists after building on his Curragh debut to register comfortable wins at Navan and Naas respectively. The son of No Nay Never has the hallmarks of being a class act and cannot be ignored. However, AFJAN posted a very encouraging time when he won over an extended 5f at Chantilly on his racecourse bow and the French-bred son of Mehmas has the potential to do better on a faster surface. First Legion, Naval Light and Comical Point are notable contenders with place claims.
Odds Shortening
Odds Lengthening![]() | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
315![]() | 1st | Charles Darwin | 8/15 4/6 | 8/13 |
15![]() | 6th | Afjan | 6/1 15/2 | 15/2 |
147![]() | 3rd | Sandal's Song | 12/1 7/1 | 8/1 |
163![]() | 2nd | Wise Approach | 18/1 10/1 | 11/1 |
713![]() | 10th | First Legion | 14/1 10/1 | 12/1 |
139![]() | 8th | Naval Light | 9/2 16/1 | 14/1 |
56![]() | 5th | Comical Point | 25/1 14/1 | 20/1 |
910![]() | 13th | Hey Tru Blue | 12/1 25/1 | 33/1 |
416![]() | 11th | Clear Force | 50/1 25/1 | 33/1 |
84![]() | 7th | Graft | 66/1 33/1 | 50/1 |
108![]() | 9th | Irish Fighter | 200/1 50/1 | 50/1 |
1114![]() | 12th | Lil Brother | 66/1 | |
1511![]() | 15th | Star Material | 66/1 | |
612![]() | 14th | Exclamation | 33/1 66/1 | 80/1 |
22![]() | 4th | Ameeq | 125/1 | |
121![]() | n.r. | London Boy | 33/1 | |
| Betting Percentage | 127% | |||
| Each-Way Terms | ||||
O'Brien and Moore have already combined for two wins at this year's Royal Ascot.
Moore will also ride Illinois, the O'Brien favourite for the Ascot Gold Cup (4.20), the feature race today.
The pair have a third favourite later in the day, with Trinity College the joint favourite for the Hampton Court Stakes at 5.35.
Royal Ascot Tips


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