Can she flower for the Queen at Royal Ascot? Rose Blossom, who made a sensational winning debut at Hamilton last month, bids to take centre stage at the glitziest meeting of the Flat racing year on Wednesday, carrying new colours in the prestigious Queen Mary Stakes.

The Richard Fahey-trained juvenile is now half-owned by Highclere Thoroughbreds, who have had a whole host of talented horses in recent years, and she puts her lofty reputation on the line in a five-furlong race which will be run in around 60 seconds.

Rose Blossom was the subject of any number of large offers from would-be buyers after her Hamilton success. It was no wonder. Making her first public appearance, she not only won by a wide margin under Tony Hamilton after bossing her rivals from the off, she smashed an all-aged course record which had stood for 36 years.

Several of the offers for her were to buy her outright, but Fahey and his good friend, John Staunton, a long-time patron of the Malton yard, who were partners in the filly, opted to sell half of her and retain the other half.

Fahey has never disguised his admiration for Rose Blossom.

“The work she did before she won – and the way she won – was very special. I’ve never had a two-year-old before who has done what she has done,” said the Musley Bank trainer, who, although taking all before him this season, will be attempting to bridge a nine-year gap with Rose Blossom on Wednesday. His only previous Royal Ascot triumph came with Superior Premium – his very first stable-star – in the Cork And Orrery Stakes in 2000.

Paul Hanagan, Fahey’s stable-jockey, has yet to taste Royal Ascot glory. And therein lies another twist, as Hanagan is lucky to be riding at all. He ended up in York District Hospital on Saturday after a nasty incident on Knavesmire.

The North’s top pilot was dramatically kicked on the leg by unraced juvenile William Morgan as he attempted to mount the colt.

“He caught me by surprise,” said Hanagan. “The pain was unbelievable and I thought for a moment that I’d broken my leg.”

Fortunately, despite being administered oxygen and stretchered from the parade-ring, Hanagan escaped without a fracture, but with painful bruising.

He added: “He caught me just above the knee, on the side and back of my thigh. Any lower and it could have had drastic consequences. I was very lucky.”

Incrediby, Hanagan was back riding within 48 hours, at Carlisle on Monday, where he returned to the scoresheet aboard Mo Mhuirnin in the featured fillies’ handicap.

Hanagan has further chances at Royal Ascot throughout the week on the likes of Deadly Secret (Britannia Handicap) and facile Doncaster winner She’s Character (Albany Stakes), while Fahey has other irons in the fire with such as Mister Hardy (Buckingham Palace Handicap) and Knot In Wood (Wokingham Handicap).

A notable absentee, however, from the Musley Bank raiding party is Utmost Respect, who had been in the running for the Group 1 Golden Jubilee on Saturday.

Winner of both his Group-race starts this season, at York and the Curragh, Utmost Respect is much happier on easy ground and Fahey has taken the stance to miss the meeting. “We’re skipping Ascot,” he explained. “I just feel the ground won’t be there for him, so I decided not to be tempted into it. His next main target will be the July Cup at Newmarket next month.”



If anyone doubted how Freddie Tylicki would react to spending two weeks sidelined with suspension, the crack Ryedale apprentice provided his own extraordinary answer.

In seven days, he rode nine winners, which included no fewer than three at York’s weekend meeting.

Tylicki posted a Knavesmire double on Friday aboard Prince Evelith, trained by John Quinn, and Joe Jo Star, trained by his boss, Richard Fahey, and followed up aboard Fahey’s Changing The Guard on Saturday.

“I’ve come back hungrier than ever and very strong mentally. What a period it’s been – unreal,” said Tylicki, who was banned under the totting-up process for breaching the whip rules.

“I’ve learned my lesson and I’m now using my whip differently and more sparingly than I did before,” he added.

Tylicki went on to further success at Carlisle on Monday when a single strike took his career score to 50 winners – all but one of which have been achieved since King’s College Boy got him off the mark in Britain at Beverley 13 months ago – and which reduced his riding allowance to 3lb.

Yesterday, Tylicki was due to make his Royal Ascot debut aboard Keenes Day, trained by Mark Johnston, in the Ascot Stakes, while later in the week at the season’s most prestigious fixture, he is set to resume his partnership in the Buckingham Palace Handicap with the Fahey-trained Mister Hardy, on whom he has won three from three this season.



Jamie Kyne, who gained the first double of his career at Beverley last month, produced a stylish encore last week on the same course.

Just 24 hours after reducing his riding allowance to 5lb, following his 20th career success on the Roger Fisher-trained Mystified at Redcar, the teenage Kyne returned to what has become his favourite track and punched home a 173-1 double on Rosewin and Bollin Freddie.

The latter, who lowered the colours of the odds-on Joe Jo Star under a tremendous tactical ride from Kyne, is trained by Alan Lockwood, who was understandably delighted at his 28-1 success, following a stop-start gallop from the front.

“Jamie rode exactly to orders,” said the Brawby trainer, who was full of praise for the Norton apprentice.

Kyne’s other success on Rosewin was achieved on behalf of veteran trainer Owen Brennan, one of the game’s most popular characters, who is set to retire in August after 40 years of training.

“I came over here with less than £10 to my name and I’m leaving with even less,” joked Brennan after what might turn out to be the final training triumph of his long career.



It’ll be a proud moment on Friday for Graham Steel, travelling head-lad to Richard Fahey, who will be presenting the winners’ trophy for one of the races at Royal Ascot.

Steel scooped the Stable Lad of the Year prize at the Derby Awards in London last December and, just like Graham Gray, travelling head-lad to John Quinn, and the 2007 award winner, he has likewise been invited to go to Royal Ascot and do the presentation honours after the Buckingham Palace Handicap.

“It’s a real honour and I am delighted to go,” said Steel, who will be accompanied by his fiancée, Lisa Penrose, one of Fahey’s senior staff.

“We are planning to stay over in London that night and make a couple of days of it. It should be a really good trip,” he said.



There will be no runners on Saturday from Tim Walford’s Sheriff Hutton establishment for a very good reason – his assistant-son Mark is getting married.

Sutton Hall at Sutton-on-the-Forest is the venue for Mark’s marriage to Molly Phillips.

“We could hardly have runners that day,” said proud father Tim, who was on the mark at Carlisle earlier in the week with Zefooah.

The former invalid, who spent the best part of two years on the sidelines with a serious leg injury, gained her second success of the season with a determined effort in the staying handicap.

Zefooah completed a Carlisle double for Norton jockey Jamie Moriarty, also successful on Rowan Lodge, trained by Ollie Pears, who had been on the mark earlier in the week at Beverley with the Tony Hamilton-ridden Kabis Amigos.