Ascot Spotlight: Ryan Moore fancied for top jockey gong
Published:The flat racing season’s answer to Cheltenham is almost here, as the five-day extravaganza at Royal Ascot prepares to get underway.
Like the “greatest show on turf” the racing in Surrey is highly anticipated and takes in more than a few tasty Grade One races over the course of the meeting.
The comparisons to jumps racing’s gold-standard meeting don’t end there, with Ladbrokes running a book on which jockey will end the five days with the most winners, just like they do with Ruby Walsh, AP McCoy and co.
Nine men have the honour of being priced up, but any customers looking to stake some hard earned need to read no further than the top name.
Ryan Moore is the 6/4 favourite to claim the top jockey prize at the 2014 Royal Ascot meeting and, as stable jockey for Sir Michael Stoute, has a great chance of pleasing favourite backers this year.
Even without his partnership with Stoute, which currently has a strike rate of 20 per cent having won 166 of their 846 races together, Moore would be heavily fancied to ride the most winners at his favoured course.
No jockey has more victories over the past five years at Ascot than the 30-year-old and the Brighton native has a chance in every race on the opening day to get his tally rolling.
Having been part of a four-way tie for the title a year ago, when he claimed three winners along with James Doyle, Joseph O’Brien and Johnny Murtagh, Moore will be looking to break ahead of the pack early on this time around and rides Producer in the meeting’s first race.
O’Brien and Richard Hughes trail Moore in the betting at 2 and 3/1 respectively, while Frankie Dettori comes next as a 12/1 shot.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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