What next for Field Of Gold? Potential duel at Royal Ascot

We saw outstanding performances in both Irish Classics at the Curragh last weekend and the most impressive of the two was Field Of Gold’s Irish 2000 Guineas demolition job.

It was the kind of performance that will be remembered and he’s certainly going to be a horse to watch in the future.

Kieran Shoemark got plenty of stick for his narrow defeat in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket, so connections decided to go for one of Ireland’s finest jockeys as a replacement and Colin Keane got the nod.

Here we take a look at what future targets might be on the cards for the John & Thady Gosden-trained three-year-old.

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How the race unfolded

There wasn’t much pace on in the early stages of the race, which would in theory make life harder for Field Of Gold, who was held up initially. The turn of foot he showed once the race developed was frankly frightening however and the result is hard to ignore.

Sectional timings suggest it was an outstanding performance and you would imagine he’ll be a hard horse to beat in all the top races over a mile throughout the rest of the season.

You can certainly make the case that the older milers aren’t a vintage crop in 2025 and they could have plenty to fear from Field of Gold in the future.

Next stop St. James’s Palace?

Royal Ascot will surely be on the agenda next as it would benefit owners Juddmonte for him to grab a Group 1 victory at that meeting and confirm his status as the leading three-year-old miler this year.

Surely he’ll go off at a very skinny price if lining up there and he could face off against Poule d'Essai des Poulains winner Henri Matisse. Victory there would set him up nicely for whatever comes next and you wouldn’t want to take on the son of Kingman.

Richard Hannon’s Rosallion was beaten in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket before winning the Irish equivalent and the St. James’s Palace Stakes and the early signs suggest that Field Of Gold has shown more ability than him thus far.

Taking on his elders

Races such as the Sussex Stakes and Queen Elizabeth II Stakes will be under consideration later in the year and they’ll provide a new level of challenge.

The Gosdens’ colt will have to compete against older horses, but on the evidence we saw at the Curragh he has the power and ability to compete at that level.

Recent history tells us it’s unlikely that we’ll get to see Field Of Gold as a four-year-old, so Flat racing fans will have to enjoy watching him while we can.

It has been a while since we’ve seen such an exciting performance and we’ll surely see him in the winners’ enclosure again.

A mid-season break could be on the cards for him at some point, as he’s already had three runs, but that impressive performance suggests the colt is on an upward trajectory.