Desert Crown King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes (G1) will not be running for next weekend’s election after connections have dominated Cazoo Derby In Memory of Lester Piggott (G1) winners among the Ascot midsummer highlights on July 14.
Coached by Sir Michael Stoute to owner Saeed Suhail, the Desert Crown is set to start for the first time since winning at Epsom on 23 July King George with a potential rematch with the won third place Derby and Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby (G1) Westover .
However, his involvement was called into question on Wednesday when it was revealed he had suffered a setback involving his foot, and 24 hours later the connections confirmed him. will miss King George.
Speaking on Thursday night, Bruce Raymond, Suhail’s racing director, confirmed Ascot was not on the agenda. He said: “He definitely doesn’t belong to King George. I don’t know the results of any scans today so that’s just speculation, but Michael told me, ‘I won’t be able to work. with him so he’s going to miss out on a bit of work and it’s better to take him out.’
“Owners have more fun taking it out than risking it and going there with certainty when it’s not 100 per cent. If it’s a smaller horse, you can say, ‘Well, they are. I’ll lose a chance’ but you can’t with a horse like this.”
In the absence of the Desert Crown, Westover has been seen as King George’s favourite.
