Quai De Bethune

The headline result came at Ascot on 21 June 2025, where Quai De Bethune won a Class 2 race — the kind of contest that sits right at the top of the British racing pyramid. Ascot is one of the most prestigious venues in the sport, and winning there as a three-year-old puts him in genuinely distinguished company. His first win had come five months earlier at Kempton Park in January, so in the space of a single season he went from opening his account to beating high-quality rivals at a track that hosts Royal Ascot. That is a steep and encouraging trajectory.

What makes him particularly interesting is how well he performs over a mile and one or two furlongs — a distance that suits horses with a blend of stamina and speed. At that trip, he has won 2 of his 4 races, a 50% win rate that suggests the distance brings out the best in him. In Class 2 company specifically, he has won 1 from 3, which sounds modest until you remember that Class 2 fields are packed with good horses.

He is trained by Andrew Balding at Kingsclere in Hampshire, one of the most productive yards in the country right now — 204 winners in a single season is a remarkable number that speaks to a well-run, deeply resourced operation. Balding knows how to place horses carefully and how to develop young talent over time, which bodes well for what comes next.

The one thing to note is that Quai De Bethune has not raced for around nine months, returning from a break that began shortly after his Ascot win. A long absence always brings questions, but a horse who has already proved himself at the top level has every reason to come back and pick up where he left off.