King Edward VII Stakes

The King Edward VII Stakes is a Group 2 mile and a half race at Royal Ascot confined to three-year-old colts and geldings.

Sometimes referred to as the Ascot Derby, it can sometimes attract horses defeated at Epsom or perhaps a late contender for the Irish Derby.

Notable past winners include Ile de Bourbon (1978), Shareef Dancer (1983), Cacoethes (1989), Pentire (1995), Nathaniel (2011) and Japan (2019).

Find out more about the King Edward VII Stakes:

Race Overview – King Edward VII Stakes

The King Edward VII Stakes is a Group 2 flat horse race for three-year-old colts and geldings in the United Kingdom. It takes place at Ascot in June over a distance of 1 mile 3 furlongs and 211 yards.

Check out our guides to all the other Group 2 horse races.

King Edward VII Stakes Previous Winners

Take a look at the previous winners from the King Edward VII Stakes:

King Edward VII Stakes Previous Result

Check out the latest result on the Ascot Racing Track:

Check out more Ascot Results if you enjoyed this one!

Famous King Edward VII Stakes Winners

Ile de Bourbon won this race for Fulke Johnson Houghton in 1978. He returned to Ascot in July to win the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. He later started favourite for the St Leger but could finish only sixth behind Julio Mariner. He stayed in training at four and won the Coronation Cup at Epsom.

There were numerous high class winners in the 1970’s and 1980’s including multiple Group 1 winner Ela-Mana-Mou (1979) and St Leger winner Light Cavalry (1980). 1983 winner Shareef Dancer carried the huge price tag of $3.3 million. Trained by Sir Michael Stoute, he missed Epsom but won this race before taking the Irish Derby at the Curragh.

Cacoethes (1989) won the Lingfield Derby Trial and then finished third to Nashwan at Epsom. He gained consolation in this race and gained his biggest career win in the Turf Classic at Belmont Park in 1990.

1995 winner Pentire was trained by Geoff Wragg and was only beaten once as a three-year-old. That was when second to Lammtarra in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. He won the Irish Champion Stakes in 1995 and went one better in the King George the following season.

Nathaniel won this race in 2011 and also won the King George before taking the Eclipse Stakes at Sandown in 2012. He had started his racing career by finishing second to none other than Frankel in a maiden race. He sired the dual Arc de Triomphe winner Enable in his first season at stud.

2019 winner Japan was hot favourite after finishing a close third in the Epsom Derby. He went on to win the Grand Prix de Paris and the International Stakes at York. He had to dig deep to beat Crystal Ocean in that race and, although finishing fourth in the Arc, he never quite recaptured his best form.

Key King Edward VII Stakes Trials

Although the Epsom Derby is clearly not a trial, it certainly has a big influence on the outcome here. Three of the last twelve winners ran at Epsom, although only Japan (2019) had been placed. This race is also on the agenda for horses who were perhaps considered too inexperienced to make the line-up for the Derby or had been beaten in their Epsom trials.

Future targets for King Edward VII Stakes winners include the Irish Derby, the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes and the Grand Prix de Paris. Nathaniel (2011) won the King George while Japan (2019) won the Grand de Paris. The Great Voltigeur Stakes at York, a key trial for the St Leger, has been won by two recent King Edward VII Stakes winners in Old Persian (2018) and Pyledriver (2020).

King Edward VII Stakes Betting Trends

There have only been three successful favourites in the King Edward VII Stakes in the last twelve seasons; Nathaniel (2011) at 11-4, Japan (2019) at 6-4 and Alenquer (2021) at 13-8. However, it is worth noting that all but three of those twelve winners were in the first three in the betting.

The biggest shock result during that time was 18-1 shot Pyledriver (2020) who won for William Muir and Martin Dwyer. Eagle Top was a 12-1 chance when scoring for John Gosden and William Buick in 2014.

Curiously, not one of the last twelve winners had even set foot on Ascot racecourse prior to winning this race. Five of them had run over the distance previously but only two had been successful. An official rating of 103 or higher is normally required to win this race. Only Thomas Chippendale (2012), Hillstar (2013) and Eagle Top (2014) fell below this mark on 96, 95 and 92 respectively. The highest rated winner in recent times was Derby third Japan who was rated 117 in 2019.

King Edward VII Stakes – Top Trainers and Jockeys

The leading trainer in the history of the King Edward VII Stakes is John Porter who saddled nine winners between 1867 and 1904. Sir Henry Cecil came within one of his total. His eight winners were Light Cavalry (1980), Lanfranco (1985), Bonhomie (1986), Private Tender (1990), Royal Anthem (1998), Subtle Power (2000), Father Time (2009) and Thomas Chippendale (2012). Sir Michael Stoute has won is seven times; Shareef Dancer (1983), Saddler’s Hall (1991), Foyer (1994), Papal Bull (2006), Hillstar (2013) and Across The Stars (2016).

Top jockey honours in this race rest with Morny Cannon who rode seven winners between 1891 and 1904. Pat Eddery rode the last of his five winners in the race aboard Kingfisher Mill for Julie Cecil in 1997. Frankie Dettori and William Buick have four winners apiece, all of Buick’s winners coming in an eight-year spell between 2011 and 2018.

Betting on the King Edward VII Stakes

The King Edward VII Stakes can be seen as something as a consolation race for beaten horses at Epsom but it is rarely that straight-forward. The Classic can leave its mark and you probably would not want to take too short a price about a horse beaten in the Derby. The form usually holds up pretty well for races like the Great Voltigeur Stakes at York.

Summary of King Edward VII Stakes

Thank you for reading our guide to the King Edward VII Stakes.

The King Edward VII Stakes takes place on the same day as the following races listed below:

• Sandringham Handicap
• Coronation Stakes
• Albany Stakes
• Commonwealth Cup
• Duke Of Edinburgh Stakes

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