ROYAL Ascot is less than a month away and a couple runners ran compelling auditions for the meeting over the weekend, writes Andy Stephens.

Chief among them was Sahara King, touched off by Lost Boys in a typically competitive edition of the London Gold Cup at Newbury. He had to drop in from his outside stall - RaceiQ’s draw data suggested Lost Boys had a 0.44-length advantage over him before the gates had even opened - and, to compound matters, also challenged wide.