Racing Victoria Chief Handicapper Greg Carpenter fancies the 2015 King’s Stand Stakes chances of Shamal Wind and he revealed that he would be disappointed if the talented mare finished outside the top five in the Group 1 event at Royal Ascot this evening.

Shamal Wind has the chance to record a second win at Group 1 level in the 2015 King’s Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot tonight. Photo by: Sarah Ebbett

Shamal Wind is rated the lowest of the four Australian-trained horses that are set to contest Group 1 events during the 2015 Royal Ascot Meeting, but Carpenter is confident that the five-year-old will be more than competitive if she is able to replicate the performance she produced in the Group 1 Oakleigh Plate (1100m) at Caulfield on February 28.

Carpenter told RSN that Shamal Wind would likely be suited by the early speed in the 2015 King’s Stand Stakes and he believes that the Dubawi mare can finish in the placings.

“I think that she is good enough to run very well in that race,” Carpenter said.

“She comes off a victory in the Oakleigh Plate and she is a short course sprinter that can get back in the field and run on.

“The race sets up perfectly for her.

“We have had three mares run in this race in the past – Ortensia ran in it in 2012 and ran midfield, Glamour Puss ran sixth in 2006 when Takeover Target won the race and Miss Andretti won the race.

“I think that Shamal Wind is a very similar performed horse to Glamour Puss if not better performed.

“Even though she is the lesser credentialed of the few Australian horses taking their place during the week of racing, I think that she is very well suited in a race like the King’s Stand and I would be disappointed if she didn’t run top five.”

While Carpenter fancies the chances of Shamal Wind, he admits that the Oakleigh Plate winner faces the toughest test of her racing career to date in the King’s Stand Stakes and he rates two-time winner Sole Power as the horse to beat in the Group 1 event in the early hours of tomorrow morning.

“The obvious stumbling block in the race this evening is Sole Power,” Carpenter said.

“He has won the race the last two times and he is also a dual winner of the Nunthorpe and he won the Al Quoz Sprint in Dubai earlier in the year.

“He has had a start in between and he didn’t perform at anywhere near his best.”

Shamal Wind is currently available at 2015 King’s Stand Stakes odds of $6 and she is on the second line of betting behind Sole Power ($4.60).