Royal Ascot tips for Friday: today’s best bets from our experts

Day four of Royal Ascot is upon us – but who do our top tipsters fancy most?

Our top four Royal Ascot tips for day 4

Soprano

2.30 Ascot: Albany Stakes

By Tom Segal

Soprano has been my idea of the winner of this race since she stormed home at Newmarket on her debut, and while plenty of others have thrown their hat in the ring since, I still think Soprano might be something very special.

The form of her Newmarket win isn’t overly strong, although the runner-up won the Hilary Needler at Beverley and wasn’t disgraced after a slow start in the Queen Mary earlier in the week, but Soprano oozed quality and will relish the step up to 6f on fast ground.

The worry is whether she is drawn in the right place in stall 16, because Carla’s Way was keen and won at Doncaster in a quick time on her debut and is drawn in stall two. However, there hasn’t been a distinct advantage all week, so we can’t worry too much about that.

Navassa Island

2.30 Ascot: Albany Stakes

By Paul Kealy

Picked up at the Craven Breeze-ups for 240,000gns by Michael O’Callaghan, Navassa Island was chucked straight into the deep end, going off at 14-1 for 13-runner Group 3, and she did remarkably well to finish a neck second to Porta Fortuna, who reopposes here.

There is nearly always a point when an unraced horse shows its greenness in a maiden, let alone when in such hot company, and at the point it happened with Navassa Island she’d dropped back to nearly last, so the fact she managed to get so close to the winner in the end and pull four and a half lengths clear of the rest suggests she is a seriously high-class filly.

There is always a worry with breeze-up horses as to whether they will go on, but Navassa Island is a half-sister to Lezoo, who never ran a bad race last season and won the Group 1 Cheveley Park in October, and if she’s as tough as her we’re in business.

Carla’s Way, so impressive on her Doncaster debut, has to be well respected, but Navassa Island is more than double the price and that’s good enough for me.

Little Big Bear

3.05 Ascot: Commonwealth Cup

By Charlie Huggins

Disappointed in the 2,000 Guineas on his reappearance when failing to beat a rival in the Newmarket Classic. However, the son of No Nay Never was a classy sprinter as a juvenile and clearly didn’t stay the mile trip on soft ground so can be excused for that effort.

Little Big Bear was much more comfortable back over 6f in the Sandy Lane at Haydock last time as he got back to winning ways. The form of that Group 2 success has been boosted nicely since with Bradsell, who trailed Little Big Bear by just over nine lengths on that occasion, beating 16 rivals to land the Group 1 King’s Stand on Tuesday.

Little Big Bear also beat Bradsell by a similar margin in top-level company in the Phoenix at the Curragh last August and can follow up last year’s Windsor Castle win to make it back-to-back Royal Ascot victories.

Tahiyra

4.20 Ascot: Coronation Stakes

By Kevin Morley

It’s hard to oppose Tahiyra, who has twice had the measure of her main market rival Meditate in Classics this season and can come out on top again.

Mammas Girl fares well on trends and could follow the selection home at a big price. Testing ground was an obvious excuse for her 1,000 Guineas flop and she can bounce back with a much better run here. 

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