CALANDAGAN IS THE KING

Graffard grabs the riches again

- by DAVID YATES

CALANDAGAN ran straight and true in the heat of battle to give trainer Francis-Henri Graffard back-to-back triumphs in Ascot King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

A defeat by Jan Brueghel in the Coronation Cup at Epsom caused some onlookers to question the four-year-old’s stomach for the fight.

The loss had been Calandagan’s fourth in a row at the highest level, a sequence that had ended with a maiden Group One success in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud four weeks ago.

When sent in pursuit of Kalpana, who had burst two lengths clear of her four opponents entering the final two furlongs of the mile-and-a-half Group One prize, well-backed 11-10 favourite Calandagan didn’t flinch.