JUST IN:” Inspiral to Make Unexpected Shift to Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot”

In a shocking turn of events, Inspiral, the five-year-old daughter of Frankel, has been rerouted to the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot instead of the Queen Anne Stakes on the opening day. This change in plans comes after Inspiral’s impressive performance over the longer trip of 1m2f, which she demonstrated when landing the Grade 1 Filly & Mare Turf at Santa Anita last November.

Inspiral’s new target is the highlight of the second day of the royal meeting, and as a result, she has been cut from 8-1 into half those odds with most bookmakers. This decision is a testament to the horse’s ability to perform over the longer distance, which was evident in her impressive win at Santa Anita.

The John and Thady Gosden-trained horse was drawn badly in her reappearance in the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes at Newbury last month, finishing fourth to her stablemate and supposed owner’s second string Audience. However, Inspiral’s connections believe that she needs a bit further to reach her full potential, which is why they have decided to step her up in trip again.

Inspiral has had a racecourse gallop on the Newmarket July course, where she impressed alongside previous Prince Of Wales’s Stakes winner Lord North. This gallop has given her connections confidence that she is ready to take on the colts in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes.

Chris Richardson, racing manager to owners Cheveley Park Stud, explained the decision to switch to the Prince of Wales’s Stakes: “We are going for the Prince of Wales’s Stakes with Inspiral. We learnt last year in California where she ran over ten furlongs at Santa Anita that she needed every yard that day. We’ve been looking forward to stepping her up in trip again after her comeback race over a mile at Newbury in the Lockinge. She was slow away that day and was in need of the run that day and shaped as if she needs a bit further these days. That’s what John and Thady Gosden have been saying this spring.”

The Gosdens know what it takes to win the Prince of Wales’s Stakes, having won it last year with Mostahdaf. Inspiral will be taking on the colts but two fillies have won the race in the past decade, most recently Love in 2021.

Richardson added: “I know it’s a very exciting race in terms of quality but she deserves to take her chance there and we’ll learn a bit more and hopefully this will open up many more avenues going forward. She appreciates going around a bend as we saw in America when she was very impressive and if she could come back to that it would be fantastic.

“In addition to Inspiral, Cheveley Park Stud also has Audience entered in the Queen Anne Stakes. Richardson expressed hope that Audience can show improvement from four to five years old, stating: “We still have Audience in the Queen Anne and hopefully he can show he has improved from four to five. The times at Newbury were very good and he deserves to take his chance at the highest level again. Some people thought the Lockinge was a fluke but Rab Havlin was very complimentary afterwards. He should give another good account providing there is not too much rain.”

Inspiral’s decision to switch to the Prince of Wales’s Stakes is a significant one, and it will be interesting to see how she performs over the longer distance. With her impressive form over 1m2f and her ability to appreciate going around a bend, she has a strong chance of success in this prestigious race.