Sole Power wore down 11-4 favorite Shea Shea in the closing strides and won the King's Stand Stakes (Eng-I) by a neck June 18 at Royal Ascot.
The 6-year-old Kyllachy gelding rapidly closed ground on the stands' side in the final furlong, steadily reeling in Al Quoz Sprint (UAE-I) winner Shea Shea on the far side of the course to score at 8-1 odds.
Trained by Edward Lynam for the Power family, Sole Power was a 100-1 winner of the 2010 Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes (Eng-I) and has since performed creditably in several group I races, including his third in last year's King's Stand. He put to rest any lingering doubts about his ability to win at the elite level.
Sole Power came into this year's race with a win in the Pearl Bloodstock Palace House Stakes (Eng-III) May 4 at Newmarket and a fourth-place finish to Kingsgate Native in the Betfred.com Temple Stakes (Eng-II) May 25 at Haydock in his previous start. He raced twice in Dubai earlier this year, finishing second to Shea Shea in his record-setting Meydan Sprint win March 9 and fourth behind that rival in yet another record-setting win in the Al Quoz Sprint March 30, both races at about five furlongs. Shea Shea found him too strong in the King's Stand.
Sole Power covered five furlongs in :58.88 under Johnny Murtagh, improving his record to seven wins, six seconds, and five third from 33 career starts.
"He's got a great turn of foot and is very willing," Murtagh told Racing Post about Sole Power.
Pearl Secret finished third, 1 1/4 lengths behind Shea Shea, who snatched the lead entering the final furlong in a bid to become trainer Mike de Kock's first Royal Ascot winner and first South African horse to win at the prestigious meet.
Three-year-old Reckless Abandon, a group I winner in England and France, led over a quarter-mile out but could not hold his advantage and finished fifth.
Bred in Great Britain by G. Russell, Sole Power is by Cheveley Park Stud resident Kyllachy. He is out of the unraced Distant View mare Demerger, who has produced two other stakes performers in Cornus, who is group III-placed at Newmarket, and Sotka, who is stakes-placed in France.
Lynam bought Sole Power for approximately $61,650 out of the Hillwood Stud, agent, consignment at the 2008 Doncaster St. Leger yearling sale.
Kings Stand Stakes Press Conference.
