Royal Ascot 2020 – Day Two – Wednesday

Day 2 of Royal Ascot 2020 brings us six more races including The Silver Royal Hunt Cup, The King George V Stakes and The Prince of Wales’s Stakes.

Below, WhichBookie racing analyst Will Smith has provided his tips for Day 2 of Royal Ascot. Be sure to follow more of Will’s well-researched tips on our free horse racing tips page.

Royal Ascot Day 2 Tips & Preview Video

Royal Ascot Day 2 Tips & Preview

Royal Ascot Day 2 Betting Tips

Note: Any odds featured on this page were correct at time of publishing (20:50pm 14/06/2020) and are subject to change.

1.15 – Silver Royal Hunt Cup

Red Bond – 20/1 EW (Paddy Power)

We saw on the straight course on Tuesday, that potentially the ground on the middle to stands side section of the track was the place to be. It may be just a coincidence, and of course things can change around dramatically, but it would certainly be the way I would lean for Wednesday.

So, with that in mind, and given the presence of confirmed pacesetters drawn in stalls 9 (Brains) and 22 (Zhui Feng), somewhere in between the two would be possibly ideal.

The form of the 7f handicap at Newcastle just over a week ago, won by Daarik, took a few knocks in the Buckingham Palace Handicap on Tuesday – Daarik himself probably didn’t handle Ascot and the quick turnaround, while Kaeso was very weak in the market on course and ran his second poor race in succession.

The feature of that race at Newcastle that day, was the very fast time into a headwind that was blowing into their faces from over the grandstand. Anything that raced prominently on the nearside I thought was worth marking up significantly. Step forward Keith Dalgleish’s Red Bond, who is a great each-way bet at 20/1 with Paddy Power, who are offering 6 places.

Red Bond was done for a bit of tactical speed by Daarik and Vitralite two furlongs out, but then rallied and was closing again at the line. A stiff mile on the straight course at Ascot I think will suit him very well, and he is drawn nicely, slap bang in the middle in stall 12.

1.50 – Hampton Court Stakes

Russian Emperor – 100/30 (generally)

Aidan O’Brien had a mixed day on the Tuesday, but virtually everything from his stable ran well, including two fillies, Ennistymon and Passion, who ran last week. A theme of this big meeting is that so many horses will have had a rushed preparation in order to get a run in beforehand. Aidan O’Brien is a master at getting his horses to back up a run in a short space of time, so it is definitely worth backing his Russian Emperor at 100/30 generally, to win this Group 3.

Sent off 11/8 favourite eight days ago in the Derrinstown Derby Trial at Leopardstown, he was just left with a bit much to do to reel in stablemate Cormorant, who had got loose on the lead. He wasn’t given an overly hard time in the closing stages, which would suggest he has bigger fish to fry at some stage. Which makes it fascinating O’Brien pitches him in here. There are one or two interesting rivals, but none who have shown themselves to be anything out of the ordinary.

Juan Elcano ran well from the front at Newmarket in the 2000 Guineas, when perhaps unfavoured by track position, but I’m not sure he has quite the potential quality of Russian Emperor.

2.25 – King George V Stakes

Bodyline – 9/1 EW (Paddy Power)

This race is chock full of potentially high-quality staying handicap three-year-olds, and some could have any amount of improvement in them. But when a Sir Mark Prescott-trained debutant runs a mighty race behind a lovely horse of John Gosden’s, to finish second at odds of 20/1, then you know that said horse could be open to perhaps the biggest jolt of improvement in time.

Bodyline is a must each-way bet at 9/1 with Paddy Power here, and while there are dangers everywhere you look, that fact that the time of the race was very good in respect to the grade, and that he wasn’t expected to run such a big race, makes him such an appealing proposition. He has had multiple entries since that run at Yarmouth, and the master trainer has chosen to roll the dice at Royal Ascot. His sire Australia is himself a son of Galileo, and many of his progeny have similar traits to the supersire. While the dam has produced any number of soft ground winners, so the fact the ground on the round course is on the softer side, should be no negative.

4.10 – Windsor Castle Stakes

Tactical – 13/2 (Bet365)

Steadman – 25/1 EW (Coral)

The first two-year-old event of the meeting is usually associated with being the poorer cousin of the Norfolk Stakes and Coventry Stakes, as the Windsor Castle is only a listed event. However, this year, due to the nature of the season, it does look pretty competitive. That said, there is one horse that has all the hallmarks of a classic case of a winner waiting to happen. That connections attempt to break that maiden tag in a Royal Ascot race is a hand that has been rather forced.

Tactical, trained by Andrew Balding, is 13/2 with Bet365 – and if you watch back the replay of his run at Newmarket when third behind Mark Johnston’s Eye Of Heaven, in the fastest run two-year-old race so far, and it is very hard not to envisage that Tactical was much better than the bare form and will be better for the experience next time.

Another two-year-old race run in a quick time was the one won by The Lir Jet at Yarmouth, who has been purchased by Qatar Racing since. Second home on that occasion was David O’Meara’s Steadman – he is a great each-way bet here at 25/1 with Coral. Sent off an unconsidered 20/1 shot that day and the choice of Danny Tudhope here, he can outrun his price.