Tuesday sees the top-hatted brigade make their annual jaunt to Ascot as the beautiful Berkshire venue lays on the most prestigious race meeting of the year. Runners from Britain, Ireland, France, Japan, and the USA make the trip to Britain as punters settle in for one of the greatest shows on turf.
Selecting a single highlight at a five-day fixture littered with Group 1 showstoppers is no easy task. However, if the remaining runners stand their ground, the Day 1 feature of the St James’s Palace Stakes may take some topping.
Guineas Heroes Set to Lock Horns
As a one-mile event restricted to three-year-old colts, the £650,000 St James’s Palace Stakes is a natural port of call for those runners who shot for Classic glory in the English, Irish, or French 2,000 Guineas. Sure enough, the race invariably features a healthy smattering of contenders from the Newmarket, Curragh, and Longchamp events. However, it isn’t every year that we can savour the sight of the winners of all three contests striving for success on the lush Berkshire turf.
Happily, following the six-day declaration stage, the ultimate battle of the Guineas winners appears to be on, with the English, Irish, and French heroes all remaining in the 11-runner field, but who will come out on top?
English 2,000 Guineas Winner – Ruling Court
The English 2,000 Guineas winner fared well in the St James’s Palace Stakes between 2015 and 2024, with Gleneagles (2015), Galileo Gold (2016), Poetic Flare (2021), and Coroebus (2022) all following up a Newmarket success with a victory in this event. Barney Roy (2017) and Rosallion (2024) filled the runners-up position at HQ but went one better here.
In 2025, the 1st and 2nd placed runners from the 2,000 Guineas remain in the lineup. Leading the charge, is the Godolphin-owned winner, Ruling Court, who bids to hand trainer Charlie Appleby a second St James’s Palace Stakes win, following the success of Coroebus in 2022.
Sired by US Triple Crown sensation Justify, this strapping colt scored on debut as a two-year-old but was allowed time to develop following defeat in the Acomb Stakes. That patient approach appears to have worked the oracle. Returning with a six-length demolition job in a Listed event out in Meydan, he came with a well-timed run to claim the Newmarket Classic. Having skipped his intended appearance in the Derby on account of the ground, he will hope to get back into the Group 1 winning groove here.
Irish 2,000 Guineas Winner – Field Of Gold
Between 2015 and 2024, the Irish 2,000 Guineas almost kept pace with the English equivalent in providing the winner of the St James’s Palace Stakes. Gleneagles (2015), Paddington (2023), and Rosallion (2024) all won both races, while Poetic Flare (2021) and Galileo Gold (2016) finished second at the Curragh before landing this prize.
The John & Thady Gosden-trained Field Of Gold aims to follow the second at Newmarket, first at the Curragh and first at Ascot pattern set by Rosallion in 2024. Interestingly, Field Of Gold’s sire, Kingman, also recorded that exact sequence of results in 2014.
In the eyes of many racing fans, Field Of Gold should be heading to Ascot with two Classic wins in the bag. Sensational last time out at the Curragh, jockey Kieran Shoemark shouldered the blame for his narrow defeat at Newmarket. If able to repeat the levels of his Irish 2,000 display, he looks to have strong claims of handing the Gosden team a fourth St James’s Palace success, following Kingman (2014), Without Parole (2018), and Palace Pier (2020).
French 2,000 Guineas Winner – Henri Matisse
As we can see, English and Irish 2,000 Guineas winners regularly follow up in this contest. In comparison, the St James’s Palace Stakes seldom falls to the French 2,000 Guineas winner. As of 2024, 1999 winner Sendawar was the most recent Longchamp champ to add this prize to his haul. However, it wouldn’t be the biggest surprise to see that barren spell come to an end in 2025.
French 2,000 Guineas winner, Henri Matisse, may be named in honour of a French artist but hails from the rather un-Gallic climes of County Tipperary. We are, of course, referring to the Ballydoyle operation of Aidan O’Brien, who, with nine previous wins, is the most successful trainer in St James’s Palace Stakes history. Henri Matisse is behind Field Of Gold and Ruling Court in the betting market, but with a potent turn of foot and a master trainer on his side, it may be unwise to underestimate this son of Wootton Bassett.
With the Irish 2,000 Guineas fourth, seventh and eighth placed runners in Rashabar, Officer and Windlord adding depth to the field, the 2025 St James’s Palace Stakes falls firmly into the not-to-be-missed category.