Timeform say Saturday Ascot going description 'pretty close to the mark'
Timeform feel the ground at Ascot on Saturday was close to the official description of good to firm, good in places despite criticism from Aidan O'Brien.
The leading trainer hit out at the racing surface after Auguste Rodin finished a tired fifth in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes, saying: "When we walked the track, we were very worried then. It was good, good to soft in places. Nowhere was it good to firm and it was cut up on the rails, it was full of sand.
"We knew we had no choice, that’s where we were, we had to go down there – and with the benefit of hindsight, we should have come off the bad ground and out onto the quicker ground. That’s the way it is and that’s the way it fell for us today."
However, Timeform Flat Editor David Johnson said: "Pinning down the exact state of the ground isn’t completely straightforward but on both Friday and Saturday it appears that the round course was quicker than the straight, with the quickest relative times on both Friday and Saturday coming over the mile and a half distance.
"Timeform called the ground good on both the straight and round course on Friday and good on the straight course and good to firm on the round course on Saturday.
"By way of comparison, the times over the two days at the King George meeting were slower than the quickest ground at Royal Ascot on the Wednesday and Thursday of that fixture, something that was reflected in the official going description on Saturday. Timeform’s assessment of the ground can often differ from those of the clerk of the course, but Chris Stickels' description looks pretty close to the mark."
While the times backed up the official description, Johnson acknowledged that surfaces can ride differently. He added: "The King George on Saturday was the fifth fastest since the track was relaid back in 2005 and when it was run on genuine good to soft ground last year in the race won by Hukum his winning time was over six seconds slower than the time Goliath recorded. I find it very difficult to suggest it was good to soft on times. Visually, I completely get where Aidan O'Brien was coming from. It was loose on top and it's perfectly valid to take on board an observation from jockeys and trainers that watered good to firm ground rides differently to good to firm ground that has dried out gradually and naturally."
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