Norfolk Stakes
 QuinnBet
Group 2, Ascot 14:30
£150,000 guaranteed,
2yo only,
5f, Class 1   
Thursday 19th June 2025

1 Charles Darwin 8/13F
2 Wise Approach 10/1
3 Sandal's Song 9/1
15 ran NR: London Boy Distances: 2¼l, ¾l, ½l
Time: 58.87s (fast by 0.63s)

Aidan O’Brien’s relentless march through the juvenile contests at Royal Ascot showed no sign of slowing, as Charles Darwin made light work of this, justifying 8/13 favouritism with an authoritative display under Ryan Moore.

From the moment the gates opened, the towering No Nay Never colt was all business—Moore allowing him to stride on, dictating matters with consummate ease. Briefly eyeballed at halfway, he simply slipped into another gear, stretching clear to score by two and a quarter lengths—a performance as polished as it was powerful.

Behind him, Wise Approach ran a fine race in second, the Royal Ascot winner returning to form despite being marooned on the wrong side. Sandal’s Song, the lone American challenger, showed early dash but wilted slightly up the rise—still good enough for third, justifying the transatlantic trip.

The clock told its own story too—58.87s, just 0.07s shy of sire No Nay Never’s 2013 record, suggesting Charles Darwin might yet eclipse family honours. He becomes O’Brien’s third two-year-old winner of the meeting after Gstaad and True Love, reinforcing Ballydoyle’s iron grip on this age group.

“He’s a tank of a horse,” said O’Brien. “Fast, powerful, with a very good mind—he looks like a four-year-old racing kids. Ryan’s always liked him and he really powered through the line.”

Moore echoed the sentiment: “He’s very professional. He jumped sharp, travelled strong, and when they came to him, he changed gears like a proper one. He’s strong and very mature. I was just trying not to get there too soon.”

The comparisons within the Ballydoyle ranks continue to intrigue. “Albert Einstein is the freak of the bunch,” O’Brien offered. “Charles Darwin’s a pure sprinter—we’ll see how far he stays. Gstaad looked like he’ll get a mile.”

Charlie Appleby remained upbeat about runner-up Wise Approach: “He’s a horse for the future. The draw didn’t help but William gave him the right ride. He’s versatile and will stay six—we’ll let him develop the right way.”

And there was pride from Wathnan’s Case Clay after Sandal’s Song’s solid effort: “He gave it his all. James [McDonald] felt the rise just caught him out. We’ll freshen him up and aim for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint.”

Another Royal Ascot, another Ballydoyle benchmark. On this evidence, Charles Darwin may yet lead a new evolution of speed.

Norfolk Stakes
£150,000 guaranteed, 2yo only, 5f, Class 1
15 ran
Going: Good to Firm

POS. (DRAW) DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 (15)    Charles Darwin 2 9-3 A P O'Brien Ryan Moore 8/13F
2 (3) 2¼ Wise Approach 2 9-3 Charlie Appleby William Buick 10/1
3 (7) ¾ Sandal's Song 2 9-3 George Weaver James McDonald 9/1
4 (2) ½ Ameeq 2 9-3 Kevin Ryan Kevin Stott 100/1
5 (6) ½ Comical Point 2 9-3 Andrew Balding Oisin Murphy 22/1
6 (5) 1½ Afjan 2 9-3 H-F Devin Alexis Pouchin 7/1
7 (4) nse Graft 2 9-3 Mme J Soudan Kieran Shoemark 50/1
8 (9) shd Naval Light 2 9-3 K R Burke James Doyle 14/1
9 (8) shd Irish Fighter 2 9-3 Ismail Mohammed Silvestre De Sousa 50/1
10 (13) nk First Legion 2 9-3 Richard Hannon Shane Foley 11/1
11 (16) 1 Clear Force 2 9-3 K R Burke Clifford Lee 33/1
12 (14) ¾ Lil Brother 2 9-3 Paul Attwater Trevor Whelan 66/1
13 (10) 1½ Hey Tru Blue 2 9-3 George Boughey Billy Loughnane 33/1
14 (12) ½ Exclamation 2 9-3 Grace Harris Finley Marsh 100/1
15 (11) ¾ Star Material 2 9-3 Adrian Paul Keatley Connor Beasley 66/1
NR 12 (1) London Boy 2 9-3 Raphael E Freire NON RUNNER

SureWIn

NORFOLK STAKES WINNERS

YEAR GR WINNER TRAINER JOCKEY OWNER AGE/WGT SP

2024 2 SHAREHOLDER K R Burke James Doyle Wathnan Racing 2 9-03 12/1
2023 2 VALIANT FORCE Adrian Murray Rossa Ryan Amo Racing/Mrs R O'Callaghan/G De Aguiar 2 9-03 150/1
2022 2 THE RIDLER Richard Fahey Paul Hanagan Steve Bradley 2-9-03 50/1
2021 2 PERFECT POWER Richard Fahey Paul Hanagan Sheikh Rashid Dalmook Al Maktoum 2-9-01 14/1
2020 2 THE LIR JET Michael Bell Oisin Murphy Qatar Racing Ltd 2-9-01 9/2
2019 2 A'ALI Simon Crisford Frankie Dettori Shaikh Duaij Al Khalifa 2-9-01 5/1
2018 2 SHANG SHANG SHANG Wesley Ward USA Joel Rosario Breeze Easy LLC 2-8-12 5/1
2017 2 SIOUX NATION Aidan O’Brien IRE Ryan Moore Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Sue Magnier 2-9-01 14/1
2016 2 PRINCE OF LIR Robert Cowell Luke Morris Cool Silk Racing Partnership 2-9-01 8/1
2015 2 WATERLOO BRIDGE Aidan O’Brien IRE Ryan Moore Derrick Smith, Sue Magnier & Michael Tabor 2-9-01 12/1
2014 2 BAITHA ALGA Richard Hannon Frankie Dettori Al Shaqab Racing 2-9-01 8/1
2013 2 NO NAY NEVER Wesley Ward USA Joel Rosari Linda Shanahan & Ice Wine Stable 2-9-01 4/1
2012 2 RECKLESS ABANDON Clive Cox Adam Kirby Miss J Deadman & S Barrow 2-9-01 4/1
2011 2 BAPAK CHINTA Kevin Ryan Phillip Makin T A Rahman 2-9-01 6/1
2010 2 APPROVE William Haggas Eddie Ahern Highclere Thoroughbred Racing 2-9-01 16/1
2009 2 RADIOHEAD Brian Meehan Jamie Spencer Carmen Burrell & Jonathan Harvey 2-9-01 10/1
2008 2 SOUTH CENTRAL Howard Johnson Robert Winston Transcend Bloodstock LLP 2-9-01 11/4F
2007 2 WINKER WATSON Peter Chapple-Hyam Jimmy Fortune Comic Strip Heroes/Joy Trotter 2-9-01 2/1F
2006 2 DUTCH ART Peter Chapple-Hyam Alan Munro Susan Roy 2-9-01 11/4
*2005 3 MASTA PLASTA Howard Johnson Robert Winston Transcend Bloodstock Llp 2-8-12 7/2
2004 3 BLUE DAKOTA Jeremy Noseda Eddie Ahern Adrian Nolan, Geraldine Ryan 2-8-12 5/4F
2003 3 RUSSIAN VALOUR Mark Johnston Kevin Darley Tony Latter & Partners 2-8-12 4/1
2002 3 BARON’S PIT Richard Hannon snr Richard Hughes Jeff & Kath Thomas 2-8-12 12/1
2001 3 JOHANNESBURG Aidan O’Brien IRE Michael Kinane Michael Tabor & Sue Magnier 2-8-12 11/8F
2000 3 SUPERSTAR LEO William Haggas Richard Quinn Superstar Leo Partnership 2-8-07 5/1
99/17/06 3 WARM HEART John Gosden Frankie Dettori Sheikh Mohammed 2-8-12 7/2
98/18/06 3 ROSSELLI Jack Berry John Carroll Terry Holdcroft 2-8-12 10/1
97/19/06 3 TIPPITT BOY Kevin McAuliffe John Reid Highgrove Developments Ltd 2-8-12 33/1
96/20/06 3 TIPSY CREEK Ben Hanbury Willie Ryan Abdullah Ali 2-8-12 7/2F
95/22/06 2 LUCKY LIONEL Richard Hannon snr Frankie Dettori Antonio Balzarini 2-8-12 11/1
94/16/06 3 MIND GAMES Jack Berry John Carroll Robert Hughes 2-8-13 5/2
93/17/06 3 TURTLE ISLAND Peter Chapple-Hyam John Reid Robert Sangster 2-8-13 3/1
92/18/06 3 NICHE Richard Hannon snr Lester Piggott Lord Carnarvon 2-8-08 9/1
91/20/06 3 MAGIC RING Paul Cole Alan Munro Fahd Salman 2-8-13 7/4F
90/21/06 3 LINE ENGAGED David Elsworth Steve Cauthen I Karageorgis 2-8-13 14/1
89/22/06 3 PETILLANTE Alex Scott Richard Hills Peter Newell 2-8-08 10/1
88/16/06 3 SUPERPOWER Bill O’Gorman Tony Ives Mrs Poh Lian Yong 2-8-13 EvensF
87/18/06 3 COLMORE ROW William Jarvis Bruce Raymond Doris Allen 2-8-13 10/3
86/19/06 3 SIZZLING MELODY Lord John FitzGerald Richard Hills Mary Watt 2-8-11 5/1
85/20/06 3 MAROUBLE Charlie Nelson Joe Mercer Countess of Lonsdale 2-8-11 20/1
84/21/06 3 MAGIC MIRROR Vincent O’Brien IRE Lester Piggott Stavros Niarchos 2-8-11 11/8
83/16/06 3 PRECOCIOUS Henry Cecil Lester Piggott Lord Tavistock 2-8-11 4/11F
82/17/06 3 BRONDESBURY Bill O’Gorman Tony Ives Ahmed Foustok 2-8-11 8/11F
81/18/06 3 DAY IS DONE Dermot Weld IRE Wally Swinburn Bertram Firestone 2-8-11 5/2
80/19/06 3 CHUMMYS SPECIAL Gavin Hunter Greville Starkey Jack Maxwell 2-8-11 11/2
79/21/06 3 ROMEO ROMANI Ryan Price Brian Taylor Harry Demetriou 2-8-11 7/2
78/22/06 3 SCHWEPPESHIRE LAD Michael Stoute Greville Starkey M Madden 2-8-11 9/4
77/16/06 3 EMBOSS Ron Boss Lester Piggott Torki Saud 2-8-11 11/4
76/16/06 3 GODSWALK Christy Grassick IRE Dermot Hogan Patrick Gallagher 2-8-11 8/13F
75/19/06 3 FALIRAKI Mick O’Toole IRE Lester Piggott Mrs M O’Toole 2-8-11 6/1
74/20/06 3 OVERTOWN Doug Smith Eric Eldin Sir H Calley 2-8-11 9/2
73/21/06 3 HABAT Peter Walwyn Pat Eddery Dr Carlo Vittadini 2-8-11 7/4F
*run at York

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