The Master of Ballydoyle, who is the all-time leading trainer at Royal Ascot, will have another abundance of talent on display over the five days of prestigious event. Royal Ascot has always been a focus point for Aidan O’Brien, and it is a meeting where he has enjoyed a great amount of success. He overtook Sir Michael Stoute as the most successful trainer in the long history of the meeting last year with his record now standing at 91 winners. As well as that, O’Brien has been crowned the leading trainer at Royal Ascot on no fewer than 13 occasions. The Master of Ballydoyle sat down with Kevin Blake to discuss his star-studded string for 2025. OLDER HORSES DIEGO VELAZQUEZ 4 b c Frankel – Sweepstake Rated 119, he won the KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes at Leopardstown as a two-year-old, he went on to win the Meld Stakes and the Solonaway Stakes at Leopardstown last season. “He is heading to the Queen Anne Stakes and is in great form. We are expecting him to be an improved horse this year. It took us time to find out that a mile is his best trip and we’re training him as a miler this year. Obviously, we would have preferred to have got a run into him before Royal Ascot, but he misbehaved in the stalls before the Amethyst Stakes at Leopardstown last month and was withdrawn. We’ve prepared him as well as can since then, but it isn’t ideal to not have had a run.” ILLINOIS 4 b c Galileo – Danedrop Rated 116, he won the Queen’s Vase at Royal Ascot and the Prix Chaudenay at ParisLongchamp as well as finishing second in the St Leger at Doncaster last season. He made a winning return to action in the Ormonde Stakes at Chester in May. “The Gold Cup is his target. We’re very happy with him and he’s been doing everything right at home. We always thought he could be a Cup horse. He has a good mind, he’s relaxed, he stays, he’s big and he’s hardy. He was just ready to start at Chester, so we were delighted with what he did there. Physically he has done well since last year and that run has tightened him up. Regarding his stamina, none of us will know for sure until he passes the two-furlong pole, but we give him a great chance of staying.” LOS ANGELES 4 b c Camelot – Frequential Rated 123, he has won seven of his 11 starts including the Criterium de Saint-Cloud as a juvenile, the Irish Derby and Great Voltigeur Stakes at York as a three-year-old and the Tattersalls Gold Cup on his most recent start. “He’s bang on target for the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes. It’s a tough mile-and-a-quarter at Ascot and he’ll love that. He’s steadily progressing from run-to-run and he should be better again next week. He’s a real hardy man of a horse. He’s well able for hardship and able for work, so it isn’t easy get the weight off him. We think this will be a big year for him and we can’t wait to see him go to war next week.” STORM BOY 4 b c Justify – Pelican Rated 113, he was formerly trained by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott in Australia for whom he won the Skyline Stakes at Randwick and was placed in multiple Group 1 races such as the Golden Slipper and the Golden Rose. He finished down the field on his Irish debut in the Greenlands Stakes. “We had a few bits and pieces to iron out of him leading up to the Greenlands Stakes and while we got those things sorted out, we then didn’t have the time to get enough work into him to have him where we wanted for that race in conditioning terms. We’ve been able to get much more serious with him since that run in terms of work and it’s very possible that you’ll see a completely different level of performance at Royal Ascot. He’ll go for the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes on the Saturday.” THREE-YEAR-OLD COLTS GALVESTON 3 b c Frankel – Bizzarria Rated 95, he won a maiden at Naas in October and a winner’s race back at that track in May. “He’ll have a variety of entries, but I’d say one of the handicaps is more likely, with the King George V looking the most likely at this stage. He stays well and won in good style at Naas last time. There should be more to come from him.” HENRI MATISSE 3 b c Wootton Bassett – Immortal Verse Rated 116, he has won six of his eight starts including the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf at Del Mar in November and the Poule d'Essai des Poulains at ParisLongchamp in May. “The plan was always to go to the St James’s Palace Stakes after France and he is very much on track for that. We’re very happy with him, he seems to be coming forward every week. He only ever does enough in his races, he’s never going to win a race by a wide margin, so we don’t know where the ceiling is with him yet. He has a real ability to quicken in his races, so the round mile at Ascot should play to his strengths. It’s a very strong race, but we are ready to have a big crack at it with him.” IDES OF MARCH 3 b c Wootton Bassett – Nickname Rated 107, he has won two of his seven starts including the Round Tower Stakes at the Curragh last year. “The Commonwealth Cup is his target. We decided to split up him and Whistlejacket last time so that Ryan could ride both of them separately and as it turned out, it probably didn’t work out well for either of them as they both ended up being involved in messy races. He got isolated in the wrong part of the track at Newbury and probably did well to run as well as he did. He’ll be much better suited by an end-to-end six furlongs in the Commonwealth Cup, and I think you’ll see a much better version of him there.” LIGHT AS AIR 3 b c Wootton Bassett – Fluff Rated 89, he remains a maiden after four starts, but has run very well in his two starts in handicaps this season. “He in on target for the King George V Handicap. He has run huge races in his last two starts and has gone up enough in the weights that he should sneak into the King George V Handicap. I think that longer trip and likely stronger pace will all be a big help to him. He works better than a handicapper.” OFFICER 3 b c Dubawi – Hydrangea Rated 108, he won the Tetrarch Stakes at the Curragh prior to finishing in mid-division in the Irish 2,000 Guineas. “He’ll go for the St James’s Palace Stakes. I don’t think it would be fair to judge him on his run in the Irish 2,000 Guineas, as they went steady, and he got quite badly interfered with. He’ll be much better suited to a truly-run race and should get that at Royal Ascot.” SERIOUS CONTENDER 3 b c Wootton Bassett – Lugnaquilla Rated 92, he has won two of his four starts including a strong handicap at Leopardstown in March. “We have been aiming him at the King George V Handicap since his last run. We were impressed with him that day and his revised mark put him bang on where he needed to be to get into the King George V, so we haven’t run him since then. The form of the race has worked out really well, so hopefully he proves to be well handicapped.” WHISTLEJACKET 3 ch c No Nay Never – Adventure Seeker Rated 112, he won four of his 10 starts including the July Stakes at Newmarket, the Prix Morny at Deauville and the Committed Stakes at Navan. “He’ll run in the Commonwealth Cup. I think he’s better than his last run suggests as they went very slow early and Babouche quickened well down the outside away from Ryan and that was that. She beat him in the Phoenix Stakes last year too, but we felt he got caught up in a pace duel that day that he paid the price for. So, while she has beaten him twice, we don’t think we saw the best of him either day and would be happy to take her and the rest on in an end-to-end six furlongs at Ascot which is what he wants.” THREE-YEAR-OLD FILLIES EXACTLY 3 ch f Frankel – Heartache Rated 111, she won the Kilavullan Stakes at Leopardstown last year and most recently finished a close fourth in the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches at ParisLongchamp. “She’s an intended runner in the Coronation Stakes. We thought she ran great in the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches. It was obviously a controversial race, and she probably suffered more interference than any of them in it. She never really got a clear shot at them. We were expecting her to improve from that run and we feel we’ve seen that improvement in her at home since then.” JANUARY 3 b f Kingman – I Can Fly Rated 105, she won twice as a juvenile including the Churchill Stakes at Tipperary and went on to finish second in the Fillies’ Mile at Newmarket. She finished in mid-division in the Irish 1,000 Guineas on her seasonal return. “She’ll run in the Coronation Stakes. She was only just ready to start off in the Irish 1,000 Guineas. It was a messy race, and I was happy with how she ran. She seems to have come forward as hoped since that run, and I’d be expecting an improved run from her at Royal Ascot.” SWEET CHARIOT 3 b f Wootton Bassett – Clemmie Rated 92, she won a nursery at Fairyhouse in September and has shaped well in her two starts this season. “She looks to be one for the Sandringham. We can’t be sure if she’ll stay a mile, but we think she’s well handicapped and will be a danger to all if she gets the trip.” TWO-YEAR-OLDS CHARLES DARWIN 2 b c No Nay Never – Muirin A full-brother to the Prix Morny and Middle Park Stakes winner Blackbeard, he has won two of his three starts to date including an impressive victory in a winner’s race at Naas in May. “The plan is for him to run in the Norfolk Stakes. He’s a big, hardy, strong, fast horse. We’ve been very happy with him since Naas and are comfortable with him at five furlongs.” GSTAAD 2 b c Starspangledbanner – Mosa Mine A half-brother to the two-time Group 1-winning juvenile Vandeek, he realised 450,000gns as a yearling, he made a winning debut in a six-furlong maiden at Navan in May. “The plan is to go for the Coventry Stakes with him. It was probably a little surprise that he was able to beat True Love on his debut when she had the benefit of a very good run, but the pace wasn’t that quick and that gave him a chance on the day. He has come forward plenty from that and looks an exciting colt.” MINERVA 2 ch f Frankel – Prize Exhibit Finished third in a seven-furlong maiden at Leopardstown on her debut in June. “She was working very well prior to her debut at Leopardstown, and we thought she’d be very tough to beat, but she was surprisingly green and just didn’t perform on the day. We feel she is a lot better than that and if she pleases us in the coming days, we might let her take her chance in the Chesham Stakes.” MOMENTS OF JOY 2 ch f Justify – Shell House Made a winning debut in a seven-furlong maiden at Leopardstown in June. “She made a lovely winning debut in a maiden at Leopardstown. She was the second string on the day and the other filly was working better, but this lady produced a fine performance on the day. We’ll see how she is in the coming days, but she’s a possible for the Chesham Stakes.” SIGNORA 2 b f Frankel – Heartache A full-sister to the high-class filly Exactly, she made an eye-catching debut when a never-nearer third in Fillies Sprint Stakes at Naas in May. “At this stage if she runs it will most likely to be in the Albany Stakes. We think she’s a very good filly and we loved her first run. She lacks a bit of experience going to a meeting like Royal Ascot, but we think she has more than enough talent to justify having a go.” TRUE LOVE 2 b f No Nay Never – Alluringly Made a highly-promising debut when second to Lady Iman in a Listed race at the Curragh prior to being beaten by Gstaad in a maiden at Navan. “The plan is for her to go to the Queen Mary Stakes. We were a little surprised that she was beaten on her latest start, but she’s a filly that wants a strong pace and that race just wasn’t run in a way that played to her strengths. The five-furlong trip and speed of the Queen Mary will really suit her and we’re looking forward to seeing what she can do with that setup.” WARSAW 2 br c Wootton Bassett – Espania From the wonderful family of City Of Troy, he made an impressive winning debut at Navan in June. “He was impressive at Navan, and we’ll most likely let him take his chance in the Coventry Stakes. He’s been in good order since Navan, and we’ve always liked him.”