NAP of the Day: Darwin to evolve into Royal Ascot banker

We've got some excellent racing to look forward to at Naas on Sunday, as they host their Royal Ascot trials card, and there will be plenty of runners hoping to rubber stamp their tickets for next month’s big event by coming out on top here. There are several Listed and Group 3 races across the eight-race card, the first of which is the Owenstown Stud Stakes and the Group 3 Fillies Sprint Stakes is up next. Naas' other Group race, the Lacken Stakes, follows and another Listed race closes out the card.

I have one particularly strong fancy across the card and the horse in question represents Ballydoyle. A very classy two-year-old last term, injury scuppered his season but he seems to have retained all of his ability and Royal Ascot could be on the cards. Read on for my NAP of the Day for Sunday, 17 May.

Trained by Aidan O'Brien, CHARLES DARWIN developed into an exceptional two-year-old in the first half of last season and would have been a horse to follow if injury setbacks hadn’t led to him missing the rest of the season.

There's plenty to like about his pedigree, as the son of No Nay Never is a full-brother to Blackbeard, who was a very smart Group 1-winning juvenile himself. It's entirely possible that he can go one to become even better than his illustrious sibling.

He made his debut in a 5f maiden at the Curragh in April 2025 and stuck to his task well to finish a relatively close up fourth. Clearly he needed the run and the experience because he left that run well behind him on his second start, as many of the yard’s juveniles do.

Going up in trip next time, he ran away with a 6f maiden at Navan a couple of weeks later. He made all the running on that occasion and the result never looked in doubt. Horses don't win 6f races by five-and-a-half lengths too often and it was an imperious display.

Connections decided to drop him back down in trip for a conditions race here at Naas next time and he made all the running once again, going on to score by another impressive margin. It’s therefore no surprise that Royal Ascot was next on the agenda.

The step up in grade made no difference to him and he produced a powerful display to win the Norfolk Stakes by two-and-a-quarter lengths at Ascot in June. None of his rivals had an answer to his pace and power and the second went on to win the Middle Park Stakes.

Charles Darwin did well to win a Listed contest at Navan on his seasonal reappearance, off the back of a 310-day absence, and he's entitled to improve plenty for that. He should be too good for this field and Royal Ascot's Commonwealth Cup will be firmly in his sights.

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