There are two G1 contests on the fourth day of Royal Ascot: the Commonwealth Cup, for three-year-old sprinters, and the Coronation Stakes for this year’s Classic crop of fillies.
The Commonwealth Cup sees Night Of Thunder’s exciting unbeaten daughter Suesa fly the flag for France. She comes into the race off the back of two Group wins this season in the Prix Sigy and the Prix Texanita, both of which she landed by wide margins.
She will bid to become Night Of Thunder’s fourth Royal Ascot winner, following Molatham in last year’s Jersey Stakes, the front-running Lola Showgirl in Wednesday's Kensington Palace Handicap and Buckingham Palace Stakes winner Highfield Princess.
Also lining up is Belardo’s Isabella Giles, a dual Group winner at two.
Belardo is also represented in the G1 Coronation Stakes by Lullaby Moon. The winner of four of her six starts last year in a progressive juvenile campaign, she finished the season with victories in the Listed Redcar Two-Year-Old Trophy and the G3 Prix Miesque in France.
Dual G1 winner and last year’s leading freshman by Group wins, Belardo ran at the Royal meeting himself, finishing a narrow second to Tepin in the G1 Queen Anne.
Earlier on the card, two-year-old Dubawi filly Prettiest will aim to maintain her unbeaten record in the G3 Albany. She is the first foal out of the three-time G1 winner Alice Springs, meaning she is bred on the same cross as Night Of Thunder and Ghaiyyath.
Three Darley stallions have runners in the G2 King Edward VII Stakes. G1 winner Gear Up bids to become the second winner of the race for Teofilo, following Permian four years ago.
Dubawi has also previously had the winner of this race – twice, in fact courtesy of subsequent Dubai World Cup winner Monterosso in 2010 and Old Persian three years ago. This year, his son Yibir will aim to build on a promising performance in the Sandown Classic trial earlier in the season.
On a busy day for Belardo, Belloccio seeks to add further Black Type to his record, having topped an unbeaten juvenile campaign with a French Listed victory.
