Hootenanny has given American trainer Wesley Ward his fourth Royal Ascot winner with a dominant display in the Windsor Castle Stakes.
Ward enjoyed a groundbreaking double with Strike The Tiger in the Windsor Castle and Jealous Again in the Queen Mary Stakes in 2009 and added to his tally with last year’s Norfolk Stakes scorer No Nay Never.
Hootenanny, owned by the Coolmore triumvirate of John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith, was the strongly-backed 7-2 favourite in the hands of Victor Espinoza.
He got off to a fast start towards the stands rail and while his rivals tried throw down challenges right across the track, Hootenanny was in a different league as he came home with 3-1/2 lengths in hand over 100-1 shot Union Rose.
It was a first Royal winner for Espinoza, who has enjoyed a memorable year having guided California Chrome to win both the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes.
“He’s pretty quick out of the gate and I tried to slow him down a little bit to save him for the end, I didn’t want to burn him out,” Espinoza said.
“I was happy in the middle, I just wanted to go in straight lines.
“I’ve had a fantastic year, a Kentucky Derby and now a Royal Ascot winner.”
