Crimson Advocate (13/2) produced a devastating turn of foot to pass all of her rivals and score by a resounding length and three-quarters in the Grade 2 Duke Of Cambridge Stakes.

This is a second Royal Ascot success for the four-year-old, who won the Queen Mary Stakes on this day in 2023, when trained in the USA by George Weaver.

Now with John & Thady Gosden after being purchased by Wathnan Racing, that speed came to the fore as she swamped the field under a well-judged ride by James McDonald.

Eventual runner-up Cinderella's Dream (5/4 favourite) had no answer to the winner’s change of gear, with another Wathnan runner Fallen Angel (6/1) a head further behind in third.

John Gosden said: “We knew Crimson Advocate would run a big race, although I didn’t expect her to go by those three fillies. Running Lion won it last year, the second and third are Group 1 fillies. I said to James, ‘just settle her’. He did a beautiful job. She was in really great hands.

“At the furlong marker, I thought Running Lion had it – the commentator thought the same too – then suddenly, this filly comes… impressive. Last year, she came in from America and the plan was to run her in the King Charles III. William [Buick] rode her and said, ‘John, she was looking for a bend after three furlongs’, being an American filly.

“We settled her, gave her a long time off and she ran really well in the Snowdrop, finishing strongly. Rab [Havlin] settled her at Goodwood the other day, got up and won. Full marks to Rab and everyone, and Thady, who have been devoting their time to settling her. She sat in last and blew them away. I am absolutely thrilled. I have to say this one was not much to do with me.”

Asked whether the mare will target a Group 1 now, Gosden said: “I haven’t thought that far ahead! I thought she would get placed, but I didn’t think she would win. But she’s done it well and we will have to readjust our sights!”

McDonald, who is one of the top jockeys in Australia, said: “Coming into it, the questions were whether she would relax well enough and if she ran a stiff mile, but she ticked all those boxes. She relaxed and gave me a beautiful ride. She was fantastic.

“She was bubbling underneath me the whole way and, the further the race went, the more she actually gave me. When William [Buick] committed a furlong and a half from home, she was still on the bridle. She accelerated so quickly. She obviously has speed over five furlongs and, now she is stretching out over a mile, it bodes well for the future.

“It is really special to be here. Royal Ascot is the most amazing carnival. Any opportunity to come to Royal Ascot, you take it with both hands, and it’s just a special place to be part of.”

McDonald was asked by Wathnan to ride as second jockey during this year’s meeting. Richard Brown of Wathnan explained: “It was an idea that came together about two weeks ago. I had a chat with Olly Tait and the whole team. James Doyle is absolutely our number one, and he was brilliant yesterday. It was a great ride and delighted to have rewarded James [McDonald] with a winner.”

On the third Fallen Angel, Brown said: “I am absolutely delighted with her. The ground was probably a little bit quicker than ideal, but I was so pleased with what she did in the last 50 yards. I think in the autumn when we get a bit of ease in the ground, she’ll be back into a big one for us. We might go up in trip – it will be somewhere between a mile and a mile and a quarter, but ease in the ground is going to be important.”

Charlie Appleby said of Cinderella’s Dream: “She ran a good, solid race. William felt he had everything covered turning in but didn’t expect the winner to come over the top the way she did. William would prefer to see her back on a straight track, so we will head to the Falmouth Stakes next.”

David Howden, owner of the fourth Running Lion, said: “She ran a cracker. I thought we had it there for a while! She ran a huge race, and she just tired at the end there. She’s back in great form and she clearly likes it here at Royal Ascot. She gave me a lot of excitement for a while.”