Aidan O’Brien is approaching one of the most remarkable milestones in the history of Royal Ascot. Standing on 96 winners at the June meeting, a typical Ballydoyle showing at this year’s royal fixture would be enough to take the master of Ballydoyle to an unprecedented century of winners at the track.
Whether you like to place stakes on today’s racing action or prefer to plan your Royal Ascot bets well in advance, the O’Brien operation will be front of mind throughout the five days. Ballydoyle have sent out at least four winners at Berkshire in each of the last four years, so there is every reason to expect another productive week. If you bet on horse racing at the highest level, these are four horses who could play a key role in helping him reach the milestone.
Speaking on the target, O’Brien said: “It would be unbelievable for everyone to get 100 winners. It’s a big team effort, and I know the lads love Ascot. It’s a beautiful week, everything is class, but every race is so competitive. 100 would be incredible for everyone. It’s very important, and the lads love it when the weather is nice, and the racing is fantastic.”
New Yorker
One of the most exciting two-year-olds to have emerged from Ballydoyle so far this season, New Yorker is a son of No Nay Never who announced himself with a winning debut on the all-weather at Dundalk in early April.
That is a modest enough starting point on paper, but connections clearly have much bigger ambitions for the colt, who is already the ante-post favourite for the Coventry Stakes, with the Norfolk Stakes mentioned as an alternative option. The speed pedigree is there, and O’Brien rarely points horses towards Royal Ascot without good reason.
Scandinavia
One of the standout stayers in training, Scandinavia ended his three-year-old campaign with back-to-back Group 1 victories in the Goodwood Cup and the St Leger at Doncaster. Connections made a clear statement of intent by swerving the Melbourne Cup and putting the Justify colt away with the Ascot Gold Cup as his sole objective for 2026.
O’Brien confirmed: “He’s finished for the season and we’ll train him for the Gold Cup next year.” Ballydoyle’s record in the race is extraordinary: a 12th victory would add to a legacy built by the likes of Yeats and Kyprios, and Scandinavia has the class, the stamina, and the preparation time to be a formidable challenger.
Minnie Hauk
Already a three-time Group 1 winner having landed the Oaks, Irish Oaks and Yorkshire Oaks in 2025, Minnie Hauk has the Prince of Wales’s Stakes firmly on the radar for this season. She went agonisingly close to Arc glory last autumn, beaten a head by Daryz at Longchamp, and O’Brien has identified the 10-furlong Ascot showpiece as the race that suits her best at the royal meeting.
“She might be the one the Prince of Wales’s will suit the most,” he said. A Frankel filly stepping up to four, she is the type to improve further, and a Royal Ascot victory would be a fitting addition to an already glittering career.
Charles Darwin
A son of No Nay Never and a full brother to the speedy Blackbeard, Charles Darwin announced himself as one of the most exciting juveniles in Europe with a dominant display in the Group 2 Norfolk Stakes at last year’s Royal Ascot, going off odds-on and pulling clear under Ryan Moore to win by two and a quarter lengths.
O’Brien described him at the time as “very, very fast” and a horse with an exceptional mind to match his ability. He has not been seen since that Ascot victory, but connections are keeping him on the three-year-old sprint trail, with the Group 1 Commonwealth Cup over six furlongs and the Group 1 King Charles III Stakes over five both potential targets. Proven at both distances already, he arrives in 2026 as one of the most anticipated horses in the sprinting division.
Article written by Ryan Miller
