It's US vs. Australia in a Royal Ascot Rumble

Golden Pal and Nature Strip will race each other in the King's Stand Stakes on Tuesday. The winner gets an all-expense-paid berth in Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint. Nature strip is the undisputed world's best turf sprinter according to the Longines World's Best Racehorse rankings.

Australia is sitting for the King's Stand in Royal Ascot. Chris Waller's horses Nature Strip and Home Affairs are the favourites. Wallers is charged with bringing Australia its first Royal Atcot title in 10 years.

Waller's first Royal Ascot winner was Brazen Beau. Waller is confident about his second runner, Golden Pal. Nature Strip and Home Affairs are good straight track horses. They need to replicate their Australian form to be able to fight out the finish.

Golden Pal is a two-time Breeders’ Cup winner. He won the Juvenile Turf Sprint in 2020 and the TurF Sprint last year. Golden Pal has won six of his last seven races and is 6-for-9 overall. Two of the blips came in England: a second in the 2020 Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot and last summer”s seventh in Nunthorpe Stake at York.

Nature Strip is the favorite at Royal Ascot. Golden Pal is listed anywhere from 11/4 to 7/2. King's Lynn is Queen Elizabeth II's first entry in the Platinum Jubilee year of Royal Atcot and is a slight favorite. It's US vs. Australia in a Royal Acot Rumble. It took three years to get Nature Strip to Royal