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Gropu 1 glory for the Shadwell homebred

Shadwell homebred Mostahdaf delivered a brilliant wide-margin victory over a field full of proven Group 1 performers in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot on Wednesday.

The John and Thady Gosden-trained five-year-old entire, who already had six black-type successes to his name, travelled easily at the rear of the field in the early stages of the race, before being pushed into the lead by jockey Jim Crowley two furlongs from home.

Mostahdaf surged clear to win by four lengths from Irish Champions Stakes, Tattersalls Gold Cup and Vertem Futurity Trophy winner Luxembourg, with former Derby and King George hero Adayar another half of a length away in third. Further top-level winners Bay Bridge and Classic Causeway were fifth and last of six respectively.

John Gosden reported after the race that the horse’s next target will likely be the Juddmonte International at York in August.

Mostahdaf is a Frankel half-brother to three other winners including another of Shadwell’s recent Royal Ascot scorer in Nazeef, who took the Duke of Cambridge Stakes en route to gaining Group 1 laurels in the Falmouth and Sun Chariot. The exciting Mostabshir who ran in the St James’s Palace on Tuesday is also another half-sibling.

Nazeef featured among the top-class racemares and producers who have been covered by last year’s outstanding European champion Baaeed in his first season standing at Nunnery Stud.

The dam, Handassa, is a listed winning half-sister to Santa Anita Grade 2 winner Desert Stone out of Starstone, an unraced Diktat half-sister to Group 1-winning sprinters Goodricke and Pastoral Pursuits.