Turf bettors should wait on King George

Anyone who plans to have a go at the this weekend should hold off until the result of the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes is known on Saturday morning.

Five of the 23 horses that appear on the BC Turf list are scheduled to run in the Group 1, 1 1/2-mile race at Ascot, with post time set for 10:50 a.m. EDT. They are: Epsom Derby winner Kris Kin, Irish Derby winner Alamshar, Eclipse Stakes winner Falbrav, Prince of Wales's Stakes winner Nayef, and Dubai Sheema Classic winner Sulamani.

There are also five King George probables that would become BC Turf candidates with a victory or a placing on Saturday. They are: last year's Irish Champion Stakes winner Grandera; Gran Premio di Milano winner Leadership; Warrsan, a two-time Group 2 winner this year going 1 1/2 miles; Magistretti, second most recently in the Grand Prix de Paris; and Indian Creek, who took the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot in his latest appearance.

History informs us that the $1.2 million King George is the best early-season prep for the Turf.

Five previous King George winners - Golan, Montjeu, Daylami, Opera House, and Dancing Brave - have run in the Turf, and while Daylami was the only one of the five to win in the Breeders' Cup, 1998 King George winner Swain was an unlucky third in the Breeders' Cup Classic that same year.

And in 2001, King George runner-up Fantastic Light won the Turf en route to landing an Eclipse Award as best turf horse.

There are some interesting European-trained horses in the BC Turf future bet that are not running in the King George.

French Derby winner Dalakhani was just a half-length second to Alamshar in the Irish Derby and the feeling persists that he is still the best 3-year-old in Europe. He will reappear in the Group 2, 1 1/2-mile Prix Niel at Longchamp on Sept. 14, while Ange Gabriel, winner of the last two runnings of the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud, could run that same day in the Group 2, 1 1/2-mile Prix Foy.

Last year's Turf winner High Chaparral, sidelined of late with a shoulder injury, is being aimed at the Group 2, 1 1/4-mile Royal Whip Stakes at The Curragh on Aug. 10. After that he could use the Prix Foy as his Arc prep.

Another to keep tabs on is Grand Prix de Paris winner Vespone. He was sold to Godolphin this week, a move that increases his chances of appearing in one of the autumn's big international races.