The curtain comes down on the Royal Ascot meeting on Saturday with a seven-race card headlined by the Group One Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at 3.40pm.
Australia are doubly represented in the feature sprint with Joliestar and Overpass, the latter backing up admirably from his valiant third in the King Charles III on Tuesday.
Those two runners, along with Japanese raider Satono Reve, are expected to attract significant World Pool money from international punters looking for familiar names.
Given the likely weight of money on those runners, finding value in the internationally commingled markets becomes the primary objective for shrewd players on Saturday.
COMANCHE BRAVE stands out as a genuine win and place contender, having already been flagged in ante-post analysis as a horse capable of running very well here.
He looks a highly progressive sprinter, having been dropped in trip by Donnacha O’Brien to great effect, with the move paying dividends quickly.
His first run over six furlongs since breaking his maiden produced an excellent fifth to Ka Ying Rising in Group One company at Sha Tin back in April.
He then proved that effort behind the world’s best sprinter was no fluke when landing the Group Two Greenlands Stakes at the Curragh in May.
With Pierre-Charles Boudot returning to the saddle, Comanche Brave rates as a standout win and place selection in a race where his ability may still be underestimated by the pools.
SAJIR also catches the eye as a horse who has mixed it with the fastest horses around for a couple of consistent seasons under trainer Andre Fabre.
His most eye-catching piece of form came when he beat last year’s winner of this very race, Lazzat, in the Group One Prix Maurice de Gheest at Deauville.
He arrives here sharpened by a Group Three win over five furlongs and is worth including in the win and place pools alongside Comanche Brave.
LAKE FOREST is another who cannot be left out, despite a career that has at times left observers unsure of his best trip and conditions.
He had struck many as trap-less, neither quick enough for a standard six furlongs nor quite getting home over a mile when tried.
However, his opportunity over this stiff six furlongs was limited to just one previous run, a fine second in the Group One Commonwealth Cup back in 2024.
After a dominant recent victory over seven furlongs at Haydock, he is firmly rolled into a Quinella alongside Comanche Brave and Sajir.
In the opening Group Two Norfolk Stakes at 2.30pm, Aidan O’Brien saddles CARRY THE FLAG as he pursues a remarkable Royal Ascot double-century of winners.
His form has worked out well during the week, having been second to Coventry winner Great Barrier Reef and having previously beaten Albany second Sun Goddess.
Clive Cox’s ORTHODOX is the value alternative, looking rapid and dominant on his only start at Salisbury over five furlongs in the style of a potentially smart horse.
Archie Watson’s FLIGHT SIGNAL, who created a big impression on debut at Bath, rounds out a Quinella combination that could prove profitable against a potentially over-bet favourite.