This Saturday sees the eighth staging of QIPCO British Champions Day at Ascot racecourse and it will once again break all records as the most valuable day's racing in the history of the sport in Britain.
As the culmination of the QIPCO British Champions Series, this raceday features the end-of-season championship races for five racing divisions.
Here at 888sport we will concentrate on the two major races that have attracted the most betting turnover and the biggest interest globally.
Queen Elizabeth II Stakes
Roaring Lion has kept on improving throughout the campaign, establishing himself as the leading colt of his generation with fine performances in the second half of the season.
During the year, he completed a hat-trick of Group One wins in the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown, the Juddmonte International at York and the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown.
His trainer, John Gosden, had the option of either running him in this or in the Champion Stakes and the connections opted for this race.
Whether the conditions underfoot are going to blot his copybook remains to be seen but he certainly won’t lack for fitness and resolve.
The French-raider Recoletos ran well in the Champion Stakes last year on the same type of he will encounter this Saturday when fourth to Cracksman.
His Royal Ascot performance can be forgiven in the Queen Anne over this course and distance, and he comes into this off the back of a good win in the Prix du Moulin at ParisLongchamp.
Lord Glitters can handle a variety of ground types but appears to excel himself when conditions are soft.
David O’Meara’s grey was a popular winner of the Balmoral Handicap on this card 12 months ago and this has likely been the long term plan for the five-year-old for some time with conditions right up his street.
The Karl Burke-trained Laurens takes on the boys for the first time, but that should hold no fears for her and she still looks to be progressing.
She has landed four Group One contests this season and she looked like she could win a few more when taking the Sun Chariot at Newmarket earlier this month.
William Haggas’ Addeybb was a real stamp of a horse on a soft surface at the start of the season and his run in the Lockinge on fast ground can be forgiven. Since then Haggas has given the Pivotal gelding the summer off to recover.
Unfortunately his comeback plans have been scuppered twice now because of a quick surface. He was pulled out of the Irish Champion Stakes on the day of the race and he was also removed on the day from the Prix Daniel Wildenstein.
Ready for the track for almost six weeks now, and choosing this race over the Champion Stakes, the match fit four-year-old could quite easily run a few of these into submission.
888sport selection: Addeybb (e/w).
Champion Stakes
In what will be his final race before being retired to stud, Cracksman is the clear favourite to go out on a high on his favoured ground.
Cracksman was the clear cut winner of last year’s Champion Stakes, but comes into Saturday’s feature with something to prove having not been seen in public since his surprise defeat in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes back in June.
That defeat was attributed to the rattling fast ground that was experienced over the summer, so when the Clerk Of The Course predicted soft ground for Champions Day, the money piled in for Cracksman who will wear blinkers for the first time on Saturday.
All these quirks of fate will be music to the ears of the Cracksman team given that the son of Frankel has had to sit out the King George (July), International (August) and the Arc (October) all because of unsuitable ground.
Unbelievably, Sir Michael Stoute has never trained a winner on British Champions Day, but he will be hoping to rectify that with Crystal Ocean.
The four-year-old son of Sea The Stars won the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot before being touched off by his stablemate Poet's Word, in a rousing finish to the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes.
On his latest start he had to concede 8lb to Enable in the September Stakes at Kempton and valiantly came off second best.
Last year’s Irish Derby and St Leger winner Capri has had a mixed bag of a season but showed some encouragement with a close fifth behind Enable in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
A greater stamina test will be ideal for Capri and Aidan O’Brien is happy that the predicted rain has arrived just in time for the grey.
Monarchs Glen came back better than ever after 12 weeks off when winning the listed Wolferton Stakes at Royal Ascot by a length from Euginio, putting the race to bed quickly in the final furlong.
He has not been seen on the track since but that form has been franked and he could easily come into the reckoning at a nice price.
888sport selection: Capri (e/w).
*Odds subject to change - correct at time of writing*
