Tahiyra and Mawj to renew rivalry at Royal Ascot

Mawj got the better of her Irish counterpart when the two met in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket. Saeed bin Suroor's filly broke clear of the pack coming out of the dip. Tahiyra was soon hot on Mawj's tail, but it was Oisin Murphy's mount who found a little extra in the closing stages to snatch a narrow victory.

Tahiyra then went on to boost that form by winning the Irish version of that famous Classic. Dermot Weld's filly was backed into 2/5 favourite before the off and there was nothing that market rival Meditate could do to deny Chris Hayes' mount in the closing stages.

Attention immediately turned to the Coronation Stakes, where Saeed bin Suroor had already confirmed that Mawj would be making her next appearance.

"She is in good form," Bin Suroor told the Racing Post. "Her win means a lot. It was the third time we won the 1000 Guineas, but it had been a long time since the last one - 21 years."

"Obviously, the Classic races and the Group One races, you have to have the good horses. We knew last year she was a good filly, but she is a tiny filly and you have to look after her."

"It was always the plan to miss the Irish 1,000 Guineas and go to Royal Ascot as she needs time between her races to show her best form."

To the delight of all flat racing fans, it looks like Tahiyra will also be making the trip to Royal Ascot, after Dermot Weld confirmed plans with the press on Tuesday.

"Tahiyra is on schedule for the Coronation Stakes." Weld said. "She came out of the Guineas well. It was a little bit quick to run her back after the English Guineas, but she's taken it well and at the moment we're all set for the Coronation."

"We'll play it by ear with the weather. We'd hope that they'd water it well, it's very dry, quick ground but it was lovely ground at the Curragh. She's got a wonderful turn of pace."

"She's a very adaptable filly so Ascot shouldn't be a problem. The Coronation Stakes is always a high-class Group 1 and it looks like this year is going to be no different."

Bet365 make Tahiyra their 5/4 market leader for the 2023 Coronation Stakes, with Mawj the 2/1 second-favourite. You'll find the latest betting for all eight Group One races at Royal Ascot here on our website.