Oisin Murphy has chosen to ride Middle Earth instead of Sunway in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes at Ascot this Saturday.
The top jockey was recently aboard both horses, with Middle Earth finishing third in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot, while Sunway came in second to Los Angeles in the Irish Derby.
Middle Earth is owned by Qatar Racing, though the three-year-old also involves some Qatari ownership. David Redvers, racing manager for Qatar Racing, shared insights on Tuesday's Nick Luck Daily Podcast: “Oisin and I discussed his options here, and he didn’t feel there was a huge difference between the horses. At the end of the day the race is sponsored by QIPCO, Middle Earth is running in Qatar Racing colours so it makes sense he rides him. He and I also feel the race didn’t work out particularly for him at Ascot last time, he didn’t break quickly enough really and got caught behind when they slowed up coming round the bend and then everything was quickening at the same time. Whereas in all likelihood there will be a fierce pace in King George, and we’ll get to see the real Middle Earth. There’s not a lot in it but at the end of the day the colours, the fact Middle Earth is a homebred, and it’s a race we sponsor is obviously playing high on his mind."
Redvers emphasised that the jockey would have had the freedom to choose Sunway had he preferred.
“Sheikh Fahad is a huge friend and fan of Oisin. He wants him to win the championship, he wants him to thrive and fly and if Oisin had said I really, really would prefer to ride Sunway, I’m sure Sheikh Fahad would have been quite happy for it to have happened.”