Highland Reel dances to classy Prince of Wales’s Stakes win on Day 2 at Royal Ascot

Trained by Aidan O’Brien, Highland Reel has won many big races on three continents, and with jockey Ryan Moore on board did so again in what is the meeting’s richest race.

The win by one and a quarter lengths came only 19 days after his Coronation Cup victory at Epsom and with the success finally adding Royal Ascot to his long and distinguished list of achievements.

The five-year-old had been beaten by the Queen’s Dartmouth in the Group 2 Hardwicke last year but has since won three Group 1 races worldwide including the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

Highland Reel had to overcome an outside draw but Moore managed to get him across and tracking the front-running Scottish. However defeat again stared him in the face after he was driven past Scottish to lead off the home turn as runner-up Decorated Knight and eventual third-placed Ulysses laid down their challenges.

Once again Highland Reel responded to Moore’s request for more and was going away at the finish for a sixth Group 1 win that takes his career earnings to nearly £6 million.

For trainer Aidan O’Brien, it was a first win at the royal meeting and a welcome change of fortune after a Tuesday to forget.

There were two French victories earlier in the day with Le Brivido taking out the Jersey Stakes and then Qemah winning the Duke of Cambridge Stakes.

The Jersey Stakes went right to the wire as jockey Pierre-Charles Boudot got Le Brivido to the line by a neck from the outsider Spirit Of Valor in second and Mubtasim in third.

Qemah’s success in the Duke Of Cambridge Stakes was a slightly more comfortable victory, as Gregory Benoist rode his mount home for trainer J-C Rouget by three-quarters of a length from Aljazzi in second and Usherette a short distance back in third.

Either side of those French victories, Adam Kirby rode the Clive Cox-trained Heartache to victory in the Queen Mary Stakes. The pair came in two and a half lengths clear of Happy Like A Fool in second and Out Of The Flames in third.

The penultimate race of the day, the Royal Hunt Cup was won by the Amanda Perrett-trained Zhui Feng.

Ridden by Martin Dwyer, Zhui Feng made all the running in a great front-running ride against the stands’ side rail to deny Godolphin’s Blair House in second. The winner looked in trouble when both the runner-up and third-placed Tashweeq drew alongside in the final furlong, but the gutsy four-year-old battled and eventually held on well to win by half a length at the line.

The second day at Royal Ascot closed with a win for the Wesley Ward-trained Con Te Partiro, who with jockey Jamie Spencer on board came in a length and a quarter ahead of Rain Goddess in second and Paco’s Angel in third.

Tomorrow and Day 3 of Royal Ascot will see another six race card, with the big race of the afternoon being the Gold Cup, due off at 4.20pm GMT.