Tony McFadden profiles the three leading riders competing at Royal Ascot.
Ryan Moore
Frankie Dettori may understandably be hogging the headlines ahead of his final Royal Ascot, but Ryan Moore is favourite to land the leading rider crown.
Moore, who first captured the prize in 2010, has won the leading rider crown nine times in total, and holds the post-war record for most winners at a single meeting when winning nine races in 2015.
He was leading rider eight times in nine years between 2010 and 2018 - only Johnny Murtagh interrupted the sequence in 2013 - and Moore regained the title last year when riding seven winners.
He has registered 73 winners in total at Royal Ascot, a figure which places him behind only Dettori, who has 77, among active riders.
Moore is number one jockey for Aidan O'Brien's powerhouse stable and has an enviable book of rides again, with the favourites he can look forward to riding for the yard including River Tiber (Coventry), Paddington (St James's Palace), Luxembourg (Prince of Wales's) and Little Big Bear (Commonwealth Cup).
Moore also has a close association with leading jumps trainer Willie Mullins, who is set to send out a couple of short-price handicap favourites on the opening day in Bring On The Night (Ascot Stakes) and Vauban (Copper Horse).
Frankie Dettori
Frankie Dettori, who rode the first of his 77 Royal Ascot winners in 1990, has been the leading rider at the meeting seven times, with the last of the titles achieved in 2020 when he partnered six winners.
Dettori endured a miserable time of things at last year's meeting, when he rode only one winner (Inspiral) and was criticised by trainer John Gosden for his ride on Stradivarius in the Gold Cup.
Following a high-profile 'sabbatical', Dettori and Gosden - who trains in partnership with son Thady - were quickly reunited and have continued to enjoy plenty of success together on the big stage, including on Oaks day when they teamed up to win the fillies' classic with Soul Sister and also captured the Coronation Cup with Emily Upjohn.
The Gosdens provide Dettori with a good chance of getting the meeting off to a flying start on Inspiral in the Queen Anne, while Saga - owned by the King - will also be among the market leaders for the Wolferton. Other notable rides Dettori could enjoy for the stable include Laurel (Duke of Cambridge), Courage Mon Ami (Gold Cup) and Coppice (Sandringham).
Dettori is also set to partner old ally Chaldean for Andrew Balding in the St James's Palace, while his reputation, including on the international stage, means that he will come in for some exciting outside rides. He's unlikely to be on as many short-price favourites as Moore, though.
William Buick
Current champion jockey William Buick has never won the leading rider award at Royal Ascot, though he has enjoyed plenty of success at the meeting and his tally of 33 winners places him behind only Dettori and Moore among active riders.
He rode five winners last year, with three of them coming for Charlie Appleby and Godolphin. Buick will don the famous royal blue silks on plenty of occasions this week, including on 2021 Derby winner Adayar in the Prince of Wales's. He is challenging Luxembourg at the head of the market for that Group 1.
Appleby perhaps doesn't have quite as strong a team as usual, though he does have Modern Games, who is disputing favouritism with Inspiral in the Queen Anne, while Ancient Wisdom created a fantastic impression on debut and looks a likely type for the Chesham.
Appleby doesn't have anything in the two-year-old events over five or six furlongs, but that hasn't stopped Buick from compiling a strong book of rides in those events as he's set to ride Asadna (Coventry) and Soprano (Albany) for George Boughey and Born To Rock (Queen Mary) for Jane Chapple Hyam, all of whom are prominent in the betting.
Like Dettori, Buick will be a popular choice for any spare rides and will have plenty of opportunities, but he too doesn't have as many short-price favourites as Moore.
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