10:58

And so we face the final curtain for this Royal Ascot. It’s the people’s day, insofar as any day at this venue can ever carry such a label, when more folk are able to attend and a crowd of around 70,000 packs out the stand. More than any other day this week, the train takes the strain, as an estimated 30,000 normally travel here by the Waterloo-Reading line on the Saturday of the Royal meeting, so we will find out how much disruption is caused by the continuing industrial action by rail staff.



The Queen’s track is bathed in warm sunshine and we finally have the sort of weather you’d like to expect in mid-June. The famously free-drying track is described as good to firm in places and GoingStick readings also suggest that any horses in need of soft are basically sunk. This is a day to be backing zippy types with quick actions who float across the turf, raising memories of Danehill, Habibti and other great sprinters with their names on the trophies here.



Speaking of greats, Frankie Dettori is back, trying to find the one extra winner he needs to make this his best Royal Ascot ever at the age of 48. I’m afraid he is one down already, as Lah Ti Dar, his intended mount in the Hardwicke, has been withdrawn after failing to eat up. I’ve already heard one punter talking of combining the Italian’s mounts in multiple bets - but first he must find a bookie still prepared to take such bets.



Hayley Turner is not here, alas. Yesterday, she became only the second female jockey to ride a winner at Royal Ascot but today her business takes her to Newmarket and Lingfield. The only woman riding here is Megan Nicholls, booked by her father for Black Corton in the very last race. Black Corton is not without his chance in the Queen Alexandra, his very first Flat race, and it will be remembered that he has done several good turns for another female jockey, Bryony Frost, who won her first Grade One on him two Christmases ago.



But the meat of the afternoon is the two sprints, the classy Diamond Jubilee at 4.20pm and the unsolveable Wokingham at 5pm. They are Royal Ascot in miniature, over before you know it after a tonne of preparation. But the memories will be sweet if you can pinpoint either winner. Be lucky!