NEXT Saturday’s King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot is shaping up to be a thriller, featuring star three-year-olds Auguste Rodin and King Of Steel, plus older horses Desert Crown, Luxembourg, Emily Upjohn, Westover, Hukum and Pyledriver.

Auguste Rodin will be bidding to follow in the hoofprints of Galileo by landing the all-aged mid-summer showpiece having completed the Derby double.

Speaking on the Nick Luck Daily Podcast, his trainer Aidan O’Brien said: “He’s on that programme and, so far, everything is going well.

“We could have a few runners in it. Luxembourg is a very strong possible at the moment as is Pont Lonsdale. Bolshoi Ballet is a strong possibility for Ascot and we’ll have to see how Adelaide River came out of the Grand Prix de Paris and give him a bit of time before we decide about him.”

Desert Crown remains in contention for the King George after producing a “pleasing” piece of work under Ryan Moore at Newmarket on Wednesday morning.

Sir Michael Stoute’s 2022 Derby winner was beaten narrowly by Hukum in the Brigadier Gerard at Sandown on his return to action in May following a year on the sidelines with an ankle injury. Another minor setback prevented him from running in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot.

The owner’s racing manager, Bruce Raymond, said: “Michael was very pleased with him and I think there is a good chance he will go to Ascot.

“He worked nicely. It was a pleasing gallop. I can’t say he is certain for the race, but everyone was very happy with him.”

Hukum remains on target for Ascot too and a wet forecast for the week is in his favour. Owen Burrows’ stable star was forced to miss the Hardwicke at Royal Ascot due to the prevailing quick ground given he had only recently come back from a serious injury.

Burrows said: “Touch wood, everything is going well and he’ll be running in the King George. We’d like to see some rain, of course, we’d never want to go on rattling quick.

“The King George has always been about the clash of the generations and this year that looks especially the case. We’ll see what turns up, but it looks like this year it is going to be a proper race. We were really pleased with him at Sandown, we’ve been happy with how he’s been since, so we’re really looking forward to running him.”

Last year’s winner Pyledriver will defend his title at a track where he often excels, as when winning the Hardwicke Stakes last month.

After the horse completed a racecourse gallop at Newbury on Wednesday, William Muir - who shares a training licence with Chris Grassick - said: “He just did what we wanted and we were delighted with him. It was not a serious, hard gallop, it was just a day out really. He did great. We’re keeping our fingers crossed and we’re in good shape.”

He added: “Everyone says he loves Ascot but that is because it is one of the only places where we have run him. He has only run once at York and he won, same at Haydock, he’s both a winner and second in Group 1s at Epsom. I just think he’s a good horse.

“The races at Ascot suit him and that’s why we’ve kept going back there, really.”

King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes

Current betting: 11/4 King Of Steel, 3 Auguste Rodin, 4 Emily Upjohn, 5 Hukum, 6 Pyledriver, Desert Crown, 12 Luxembourg, 14 Westover, 25/1 bar.