Poet’s Word beat favourite Cracksman in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes to give trainer Sir Michael Stoute the most wins at Royal Ascot.
The Newmarket handler edged just ahead of the late Sir Henry Cecil, with 76 wins at the Royal fixture, after Poet’s Word stunned Cracksman to secure the win by two-and-a-quarter lengths.
It was a fairly unexpected outcome bearing in mind it was Cracksman who won by seven lengths the last time the pair featured in the same race at last October’s Champion Stakes.
James Doyle also got the better of Frankie Dettori by wining this race, with the Italian jockey brought back down to earth after riding three winners on Tuesday.
Speaking afterwards, Stoute said: “It’s a relief because we were stuck on it [75 winners] last year. Royal Ascot is special to every trainer.
“We’ve been very lucky to have a lot of nice horses over the years.”
He added: “Maybe Cracksman isn’t at his best now but we beat the others comprehensively. He’s a very consistent, brave horse.”
Doyle said: “I was travelling all over him [Cracksman], it was just a case of hanging on.”
