Royal Ascot: Diamond Jubilee looks wide open

There have been plenty of big races with short-priced favorites this week at Royal Ascot. Saturday’s feature, the Group 1 Diamond Jubilee over a straight six furlongs, is not one of them.

As of Thursday, early fixed-odds betting on the Diamond Jubilee had none of the 14 final entrants lower than 7-2. That price was on offer for Starman, a lightly raced 4-year-old with four wins from five starts, his record’s only blemish a failed attempt to handle a very soft Ascot course last fall in the British Champions Sprint Stakes.

Starman, trained by Ed Walker and with Oisin Murphy named to ride, has raced only at Saturday’s six-furlong trip. He made his 2021 debut over good ground at York and won the Group 2 Clipper Logistics Stakes.

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The other two shortest prices in Thursday betting have longer track records: Nahaar has won half his 12 starts while Dream of Dreams is an eight-time winner from 30 outings. Seven-year-old Dream of Dreams, trained by Michael Stoute, is a Diamond Jubilee veteran, beaten a head last summer by Hello Youmzain and handed a tough defeat by the same margin in the 2019 renewal by the excellent Blue Point. Nahaar was a handicap horse during 2020 but ran right behind Starman at York last month. Capable runners like Glen Shiel will be hoping for late-week rain to soften the Ascot going.

The Diamond Jubilee, post time 11:20 a.m. Eastern, is the fourth race on a card that starts at 9:30, with live video and wagering available at DRFBets.com.

The supporting feature is the Group 2 Hardwicke over about 1 1/2 miles, which drew a 15-horse field and had Broome at the head of the betting market Thursday. Trained by Aidan O’Brien, Broome was defeated by a generally inferior foe last out in the Tattersalls Gold Cup over a heavy course he didn’t love, but this exposed 5-year-old has been racing at shorter distances and seems like a shaky favorite in a deep field. O’Brien also runs Japan, Mogul, and Tiger Moth, all of whom have their limitations. Four-year-old Hukum, meanwhile, has just seven starts on his résumé and won well in a 1 1/2-mile handicap during the 2020 Royal Ascot meeting. Highest Ground and Logician also merit consideration at longer prices.