Order of St George the returning winner is out to win reclaim his crown. Galileo’s son has to beat Godolphin’s Sheikhzayedroad who defeated him last year in 2 mile British Champions Long Distance Cup 2016 as well as Torcedor who defeated him in the Vintage Crop Stakes 2017. Tocedor has also beat Godolphin’s Twilight Payment by Teofilo who stood second in the Saval Beg Stakes (2017) after Order of St George placed first.  Motherland was beat by the Adian O’Brien’s charge Order of St George in the Saval Beg Stakes earlier this year and seeks a head-to-head race.

Big Orange is also seeking a rematch with Sheikhzayedroad who beat him the Dubai Gold Cup 2017. And ofcourse the Ascot Gold Cup winner Trip to Paris is hoping to best the 2016 winner. But his recent form suggests otherwise though he’s good enough to place. Kingfisher who was second place in the Ascot Gold Cup 2015, was also beat by Sheikhzayedroad in the Dubai Gold Cup 2017 race, where they finished 3rd and 14th respectively. Another contender who has raced against a few of the Ascot Gold Cup runners, but notable among them would be Sheikhzayedroad is Quest For More.

The other Godolphin contender is Qewy who came 1st in the Sandown Cup and 4th in the Melbourne Cup 2016, beating tough horses like Big Orange and Wicklow Brave.

This long 2 mile and 4 furlong race will be tough for all the contestants as most of their best wins have been in 2 miles or under races. The horse with the stamina and ability to dig deep in the final stretch will definitely win. Horses like Order of St George, Sheikhzayedroad, Trip to Paris, Kingfisher know the course and have an edge over the rest. But looking at the recent races and forms of individual horses the best trifecta would be 1) Torcedor 2) Sheikhzayedroad 3) Qewy.