The Owning Hill ace has assembled another strong squad as he bids for more glory at the big meeting in Berkshire. Joseph O’Brien has only just turned 32, but he has already put together a remarkable list of accomplishments in horse racing. Having ridden 31 Group 1 winners in his first career as a jockey, he took out his trainer’s licence in June 2016 and hasn’t looked back since. He has saddled 17 Grade 1 winners over jumps and 21 Group 1 winners on the Flat.   Particularly notable victories on the international stage include the Melbourne Cup (twice) and the Cox Plate in Australia, the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf in America, the Prix Ganay in France, the St Leger at Doncaster and Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot. He hit a notable milestone in August 2022 when saddling his 1000th winner as a trainer just over six years since taking out his license. Having got off the mark at Royal Ascot in spectacular style courtesy of the memorable victory of State Of Rest in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes in 2022, he has since added three more victories at the meeting to his tally. O’Brien is preparing another strong team for Royal Ascot, which he sat down with Kevin Blake from attheraces.com to discuss. OLDER HORSES AERONAUTIC 4 b g Gleneagles – Meri Shika Rated 95, he has won two of his five starts. “He is an intended runner in the Copper Horse Stakes on Tuesday. Like most of ours, we weren’t in a rush with him early in the season and he needed his comeback run at the Curragh, but his work has been very good since then. This course and distance should be ideal for him, as will firmer ground. He has an unexposed profile and has always worked to the level of a stakes horse, so hopefully he can bring that work to the track and run a big race.” AL RIFFA 5 b h Wootton Bassett – Love On My Mind Rated 117, he is a two-time Group 1 winner that has finished in the frame in the Neom Turf Cup at Riyadh and in the Prix Ganay at ParisLongchamp this year. “He has been a star for us, winning two Group 1 races. We’ve decided to shoot a little lower with him in terms of grade by aiming for the Hardwicke Stakes on the Saturday. Though, by the sounds of it he might not be the only Group 1 horse being aimed at it, so it should be very interesting. He has been training very well since the Prix Ganay and we are going to try blinkers on him for the first time. He has always been an almost overly relaxed horse, and we found that cheekpieces sharpened him up in the middle section of his races when we put them on him last year, so we think he’s ready for blinkers now. Getting back to a mile-and-a-half will suit him well and we are very much looking forward to him.” COMFORT ZONE 6 b g Churchill – Iveagh Gardens Rated 94 on the Flat, he won the valuable Beggar's End Handicap at Naas on his most recent outing on the Flat in November and has since shaped with promise over hurdles. “He’s an intended runner in the Ascot Stakes. We’ve been mixing codes with him, and he won a strong handicap at Naas the last time we ran him on the Flat. He has a relaxed way of going which is important over extreme trips like this and his preparation has gone really smoothly. I think he’s a contender.” DAWN RISING 8 b g Galileo – Devoted To You Rated 100, he won the Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot in 2023 and the Loughbrown Stakes at the Curragh in 2024.  “He gave us a day to remember when winning the Queen Alexandra at this meeting a couple of years ago and he ran well in it again last year. He’s not getting any younger and he has come down the ratings, so the plan is to go for the Ascot Stakes with him this year. His stamina is proven, and he is a straightforward ride, so that will stand to him in a race where plenty of them have questions to answer at the trip.” GALEN 4 ch g Gleneagles – Apache Storm Rated 109, he won the Alleged Stakes at the Curragh in April. “He is an intended runner in the Wolferton Stakes on Tuesday. It is always a red-hot Listed race, and this year looks to be even stronger than ever. He will have a Group 3 penalty to carry which won’t make it any easier, but he is a high-class horse that should be ideally suited by the course and distance, so hopefully he’ll run a big race.” LEINSTER 4 b g Camelot – Black Envy Rated 93, he has won two of his five starts and most recently finished fourth in the Chester Cup. “He is entered in both the Ascot Stakes and the Copper Horse Stakes. Our preference is for the Copper Horse Stakes, but he might be close to the line of getting into the race, so we’ll have to cross our fingers and hope he gets a run. He is a lovely horse that is unexposed and ran a huge race in the Chester Cup for one so inexperienced. The shorter trip of the Copper Horse Stakes would suit him, so hopefully he gets in.” NURBURGRING 5 b g Zoffany – Shamarbelle Rated 93, he won the Galway Hurdle and finished a close fourth in the Irish Cesarewitch last year. “The Ascot Stakes is the plan for him. He isn’t the smoothest traveller in his races, but he stays very well, so this extreme test of stamina appeals as being likely to suit him. He finished a never-nearer fourth in what was a very strong renewal of the Irish Cesarewitch last year, doing much the best of those that were held up. Based on that run, he looks to be handicapped to be competitive in top staying handicaps like this. This test looks ideal for him, and I see him as a big contender.” SAN SALVADOR 9 ch g El Salvador – Angel Chorus Rated 99, he is better known as a chaser and hurdler, but has also won two of his five starts on the Flat. “He’s been a great horse and has shown a new side to himself with his form on the Flat of late! He was outclassed in a Listed race at the Curragh last time, but the Ascot Stakes might well suit him, and we’ll let him take his chance.” SONS AND LOVERS 4 b g Study Of Man – So In Love Rated 110, he was formerly trained by Jane Chapple-Hyam and has run well in two starts for O’Brien this year, most recently finishing fourth in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh. “We have been aiming him towards the Wolferton Stakes all season and have been delighted with his preparation. He ran really well when fourth in the Mooresbridge Stakes at the Curragh last time and that form has worked out very well. The handicapper put him up 5lb to a career-high mark of 110 after that and we think there is more to come from him. The Wolferton looks to be very strong, but he doesn’t have a penalty to carry and will hopefully be very competitive.” THE LIFFEY 4 b g No Nay Never – Rain Goddess Rated 98, he was formerly trained by Aidan O’Brien for whom he won two of his three starts last year. He finished an eye-catching fourth in a Listed race at Naas in May on his first start for Joseph. “The Royal Hunt Cup has been his aim since he came to us and everything has gone really smoothly in his preparation. He ran a really lovely race on his return in a Listed race at Naas and that looks to have put him spot on for Royal Ascot. He is still very unexposed, but the other side of that coin is that he lacks experience for a race as competitive as this. He works like a stakes horse and the hope is that he can bring that work to the track at Ascot.” WAHDAN 4 b c Siyouni – Lamorlaye Rated 103, he showed high-class form when trained by Jean-Claude Rouget in France last year. He has shaped with promise in both runs since joining O’Brien. “He is a horse with plenty of class and we’ve been bringing him along steadily with a view to the Royal Hunt Cup. He ran a lovely race in a Listed race at Leopardstown in May and the test the race presents should suit him.” THREE-YEAR-OLDS AMANGANI 3 br f No Nay Never – La Naturel Rated 91, she won a maiden at Punchestown in September and shaped well in a Listed race at the Curragh on her return to action in May. “She is being aimed at the Sandringham. Like most of ours, she needed the run on her return to action and shaped quite well in the circumstances. Her mark looks fair, and we think she is an interesting contender.” DANCING TEAPOT 3 b f Camelot – Lady Adelaide Rated 84, she made it fourth-time lucky in a maiden at Gowran Park in June. “We aren’t sure just yet if she’ll run, but she’ll get an entry in the Sandringham Stakes. She’s a full-sister to Dancing Gemini and we definitely haven’t seen the best of her on the track yet, as she’s just been a slow learner. The penny is starting to drop now, and the stiff mile of the Sandringham will suit her if she goes there.” EMIT 3 b c Too Darn Hot – Light Of Joy Rated 102, he finished a close third (subsequently promoted to second) in the Gallinule Stakes at the Curragh in May. “He is an intended runner in the Hampton Court Stakes. He ran a huge race in the Gallinule Stakes and to be honest, I thought he was probably the best horse on the day. He got badly interfered with and it cost him. The Hampton Court will be a stronger race for sure, but he seems to be progressing, and the test should suit him.” GLEN TO GLEN 3 b g Dawn Approach – Galuminous Rated 90, he was formerly trained by Jim Bolger for whom he won a maiden at the Curragh and finished a close third in a highly-competitive handicap at Leopardstown in March. “He joined us from Jim Bolger in early-April after running a really promising race in a strong handicap at Leopardstown. He kicked for home a long way out that day and only got run down late. Everything that has run out of the race has either won or shown significant improvement, so we think he’s well handicapped off a mark of 90. He has settled in well to our routine since arriving and his work has been strong. He was bought with a view to aiming him at the Golden Gates Stakes on the Saturday of Royal Ascot and he should get into it off a lovely weight. We’re excited to see what he can do next week and for the rest of the season. There should be plenty more to come from him.” LADY WITH THE LAMP 3 b f King Of Change – Caring Touch Rated 102, she won three Listed races in her last four starts, including the Chelmer Stakes at Chelmsford on her latest outing. “She has been a real star. It takes fair doing for a hold-up sprinter to win three Listed races in her last four starts as she has. She did particularly well to win the Chelmer Stakes last time as that isn’t an easy track to come from off the pace at. We think straight tracks will suit her better than around a bend and the form she showed when defying a penalty against older horses in the Cork Stakes when we thought she’d need the run backs that up. We have been aiming her at the Commonwealth Cup and while that might seem ambitious, the race will suit her very well and it wouldn’t at all surprise me if she ran well at a big price.” MOJAVE RIVER 3 bb f Mohaather – Quintessenz Rated 98, she won a valuable maiden at Deauville on debut prior to running well without quite placing in three stakes races in Ireland. “We’ve been aiming her at the Sandringham Stakes. She has been running in stakes company since making a winning debut at Deauville and I thought she shaped really well on her return to action in a Group 3 at the Curragh last time. It’s hard to know if she’ll be well handicapped enough for a race like this, but the course and distance will suit her well and she is unexposed at the trip, so hopefully she can run well.” OMNI MAN 3 b c Invincible Spirit – Pretty Face Rated 90, he made it fourth-time lucky when winning a maiden at Roscommon last time. “He is being aimed at the Golden Gates Stakes. He’s been learning on the job and showed good improvement when stepped up to a mile-and-a-quarter for the first time when winning a maiden at Roscommon last time. He needed to show improvement to get his rating up high enough to get into the Golden Gates and it looks like he’s landed on a rating that should sneak him in. We think the race will suit him well and he’s a horse that has almost promised plenty, so hopefully he can deliver a big run.” SARACEN 3 b c Siyouni – Soteria Made an impressive winning debut in a maiden at the Curragh in October and finished a promising third to Jonquil in the Greenham Stakes at Newbury on his return in April. “He’s a lovely horse that we’ve been training for the Jersey Stakes since his really good return to action in the Greenham Stakes at Newbury in April. In a perfect world there would be some rain for him, but he should be fine either way. This will be a tough ask of him, but he’s a promising colt and deserves to take his chance.” SCORTHY CHAMP 3 ch c Mehmas – Fidaaha Rated 113, he won the National Stakes at the Curragh as a two-year-old. “He has an entry in the St James’s Palace Stakes, but we haven’t decided on a plan for him yet as he has some interesting international options as alternatives. He didn’t have a straightforward preparation for the Irish 2,000 Guineas, so we felt he ran well in the circumstances there after meeting with some mid-race interference. We know that he is a high-class colt based on his two-year-old form, and we hope that he’ll get back to that level very soon.” TRIBAL NATION 3 br c Wootton Bassett – Indian Blessing Rated 92, he won maiden at Galway in October and finished a never-nearer third on his handicap debut at Naas in April. “The Britannia is his aim. It is always a fiercely tough race, but we feel he has the right profile for it. He ran a lovely race on his handicap debut at Naas last time and that should put him bang on for this. A little bit of rain would be a help to him.” TWO-YEAR-OLDS ANDAB 2 b c Saxon Warrior – Tickled Pink Made an impressive winning debut in a maiden at the Curragh in May and followed it up with a fine third in the Marble Hill Stakes back at that track later in the month. “He is an intended runner in the Coventry Stakes. We were really impressed by him on his debut as he had been quite sleepy in his work, so to see him win so well was really encouraging. After that he ran really well in a strong renewal of the Marble Hill Stakes, and we feel he is better than that as he had a little hold-up in between his two runs that probably cost him inside the final furlong. He has trained really well since then and we feel the style of the Coventry will suit him well. These races are always so tough, but we think he is a contender.” GREEN SENSE 2 b f Starman – Big Boned Made an impressive winning debut in a maiden at the Curragh in April and followed it up with a fine second in the Fillies Sprint Stakes at Naas. “The Albany Stakes is her target. She has shown herself to be a really natural filly from the very early stages of her training. We hadn’t asked much of her at home prior to her debut and it is a testament to how natural she is that she looked so professional in winning really well. She ran great to finish second to Lady Iman in the Fillies Sprint Stakes at Naas after that. She got left in front plenty early and just got out-sprinted by a very talented and fast filly that had more experience than her. Declan McDonogh was thrilled with her on the day and felt she would improve plenty for the experience. She has trained really well since and we are expecting her to show more improvement in the Albany.”