The Breeders’ Cup Challenge for 2022 kicks off on Tuesday with two races at Royal Ascot, starting with the brilliant Baaeed in the Queen Anne Stakes
For the b
est part of 200 years Royal Ascot has traditionally begun with a procession of horse-drawn carriages the length of the Ascot straight, from the famous golden gates down to the winner’s enclosure.
On Tuesday, we can expect the post-COVID resumption of the daily royal cavalcade to be followed by a second procession half an hour later as Baaeed heads the Queen Anne Stakes, the traditional meeting opener at the five-day showpiece and the first of four Royal Ascot to feature in this year’s Breeders’ Cup ‘Win and You’re In’ Challenge series.
In 2012, Frankel won the G1 contest by a mindblowing 11 lengths. Comparisons with that legendary performer might be premature, but Baaeed – current world #1 on Thoroughbred Racing Commentary’s Global Rankings – is perhaps the nearest thing we have seen to him since.
Analysis: Baaeed looks brilliant – but is he the new Frankel?
The four-year-old made his racecourse debut just nine days before Palace Pier won last year’s Queen Anne, but within barely four months he had usurped Palace Pier as the world’s best miler by beating him in the QEII Stakes over the same straight mile.
Baaeed is now unbeaten in seven races, the last three of them at G1 level, and on form he is so far ahead of his rivals here that he has been at prohibitive odds since his impressive reappearance defeat of the reopposing Real World and Chindit in the G1 Lockinge Stakes at Newbury.
The European portion of this year’s Breeders’ Cup Challenge series kicks off with the Queen Anne, which offers a guaranteed fees-paid berth in the $2m FanDuel Breeders’ Cup Mile at Keeneland on November 5. The King’s Stand Stakes later on Tuesday afternoon, as well as Wednesday’s £1m Prince Of Wales’s Stakes and Thursday’s Norfolk Stakes for two-year-olds also carry ‘Win And You’re In’ status. A minimum $40,000 will also be provided for all starters based outside of North America.
Queen Anne winners Barathea (1994) and Goldikova (2010) went on to win the BC Mile in the same year, while more recent winners to have run in it include Toronado (eighth), Ribchester (fifth), Lord Glitters (ninth) and Circus Maximus (second to his stablemate Order Of Australia in Aidan O’Brien’s unprecedented Keeneland 1-2-3 two years ago). The 2016 winner Tepin, trained by US-based Mark Casse, had won the BC Mile the previous year.
Top contenders
Baaeed (William Haggas/Jim Crowley) – world #1 according to Thoroughbred Racing Commentary rankings and unbeaten in seven starts, including three G1s; beat last year’s Queen Anne winner in QEII over this course and distance in October, and was much too good for Real World and Chindit in Lockinge on his return.
Real World (Saeed Bin Suroor/Danny Tudhope) – wide-margin winner of Hunt Cup (a handicap) over this course and distance at Royal Ascot last year and improved fast afterwards, winning two G2s. Disappointing on dirt in 2022 but back to form when chasing home easy winner Baaeed last time.
Chindit (Richard Hannon/Pat Dobbs) – good winner in Listed company at Doncaster but third behind Baaeed and Real World in Lockinge was his first placing in five tries at G1 level.
Order Of Australia (Aidan O’Brien/Ryan Moore) – first start back after injury and only mixed form since leading stable 1-2-3 in Breeders’ Cup Mile in 2020.
Lights On (Sir Michael Stoute/Richard Kingscote) – progressive five-year-old mare who won G2 Sandown Mile on only start this year.
Shall we talk about it?
William Haggas, trainer of Baaeed:“I’ve always thought he would enjoy racing on a faster surface than he was getting last year, and he’s in good form.”
Saeed Bin Suroor, trainer of Real World: “He will probably be chasing Baaeed again, as Baaeed is a superstar, but Real World gets further, so a strong pace would suit him, and he’s improving all of the time.”
Richard Hannon, trainer of Chindit:“The Lockinge was arguably his best run. Baaeed will be hard to beat, but he’s frightened a lot away and I’m very hopeful Chindit will run a massive race.”
Aidan O’Brien, trainer of Order Of Australia: “He had a hairline fracture of a fetlock and had to have a pin in it after running at Keeneland in October, which is why he’s been off so long, but the time before he’d been second to Baaeed at Longchamp. We’ve been happy with him at home.”
Graham Dench’s verdict
BAAEED is very hard to get away from and it will be a huge shock if he fails to make it eight straight wins. None of his six rivals features in the Top 50 on TRC Global Rankings.
• Visit the Breeders' Cup website
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