Star Australian performer So You Think has tired in the last few hundred metres of the Prince of Wales’s Stakes to be beaten in the Royal Ascot feature.
Hotly tipped to trounce the field in Wednesday’s 2000 metre group one fixture, the former Bart Cummings-trained middle-distance horse ran strongly but was passed in the straight by British offering Rewilding.
Ahead by as much as three lengths at one stage, So You Think seemed to be running effortlessly, but the New Zealand-bred dual Cox Plate winner couldn’t see it through.
“I think he got tired in the last half,” trainer Aidan O’Brien said after the race.
The now Irish-based five year old which was 11-4 favourite before the jump, is a five-times group one winner in Australia, and ran third in last year’s Melbourne Cup and now has a second at Ascot.
O’Brien said he will take responsibility for the result and praised the efforts of jockey Ryan Moore.
“I think it was trainer error, I didn’t have him fit enough for this kind of race and he’s given a good blow afterwards,” O’Brien told reporters.
“I would think there’s improvement to come.”
The result will disappoint some Aussie punters, one of whom on Tuesday wagered $200,000 on So You Think according to betting agency Sportingbet Australia.
Third home was British horse Sri Putra.
AAP
