Trainer David O’Meara has opted to send Edward Lewis to Royal Ascot instead of the meeting at Musselburgh on Saturday.
Edward Lewis, who recorded victories at Beverley and Lingfield Park in April and May this year, was expected to be entered in the final declarations for the William Hill Scottish Sprint Cup at Musselburgh in two days’ time.
However, O’Meara has decided against taking his four-year-old charge, who is owned by Akela Construction Ltd, to Scotland and has instead plumped for the Wokingham Stakes at Royal Ascot on Saturday week.
The trainer says the bigger prize on offer in Berkshire was a factor in making the decision to skip Musselburgh while admitting Edward Lewis has a better chance of coming out on top there.
“I’m going to try Edward Lewis in the Wokingham and run him there,” he told At The Races. “He ran well in the Epsom Dash, but that can be the sort of race where there could be half-a-dozen horses that are unlucky.
“Royal Ascot is more prize money. I think you’re less a victim of how the race unfolds. It’s a bigger, wider track and you’re not as draw dependent.
“At Musselburgh, if you’re not drawn high against the rail you could be out in the middle of the track and you could be unlucky again.
“I wanted to give him a run over the six furlongs and for the kind of money the Wokingham is.”
