James Doyle, who has enjoyed a memorable season, landed another plum trip after it was announced he would replace David Egan on board Mishriff (Ire) (Believe {GB}) at G1 on Saturday, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Qipco S. in Ascot.
Egan recorded the biggest payday of his career when he teamed up with John and Thady Gosden-trained Mishriff to win Saudi Arabia Cup glory in 2021, however, his cruise ship trip three-time Group 1 champion is available after Last week, Prince Faisal revealed that he would use the best jockey available.
That announcement came shortly after Mishriff finished second in G1 Coral-Eclipse, an effort that Doyle said pointed to the fact that the 5-year-old still retains all of his old passion for the game.
He told Nick Luck’s Daily Podcast, “I couldn’t be more grateful to the connections that put their trust in me and chose me to drive him.
“He is an extraordinary horse and what he has achieved is just outstanding. I think the fact that he’s running in Eclipse shows that he’s still at the top of his game.”
Doyle, who won 2,000 Qipco aboard Coroebus (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and 1,000 Guineas on Cachet (Ire) (Aclaim {Ire}) this season, added, “I will be on the show of Mr Gosden tomorrow morning to pounce on him because obviously I haven’t ridden him before, but I’ve seen a bit of him and it would be great if you hop on board before Saturday.
“He does his races very well and I think he is an unlucky shadow in Eclipse. It was an incredible run to stop the way he did and when he got out he hit really hard. “
Mishriff has an overall 4-1 chance for Seventh Group 1. He’s second behind Derby hero Adayar (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) in the one-and-a-half mile race 12 months ago.
Rivals in this year’s race are topped by another Derby winner, Ralph Beckett-trained Westover (GB) (Frankel {GB}), was last seen going to glory in the Irish equivalent at Curragh in June.
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This story was posted in Europe, News shared in Europe, Europe’s Top News and tagged David Egan, James Doyle, John Gosden, King George, Mishriff, Westover.
