Trainer Joseph O’Brien breaks Royal Ascot duck as horse State of Rest wins Prince of Wales’s Stakes

It might say something about the competitive nature of Ascot that Joseph O’Brien had won two Melbourne Cups before State of Rest beat Bay Bridge by a length in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes to break his duck as a trainer at the Royal meeting.

Still only 29, O’Brien rode half a dozen winners at the meeting including this race with So You Think 10 years ago for his father Aidan before switching to training in 2016 when the height and weight equation finally got the better of him.

On Wednesday, he also became the first person to have both ridden and trained a Group One winner at the meeting. While State of Rest is clearly very good and likes travelling - he has also won in Australia, America and France - he got a Group One winning ride from Shane Crosse, one of the ex-pony racing rising stars of the Irish weighing room. This was an upgrade on racing round village greens in Tipperary.

Drawn in stall one, he jumped well, led and, essentially, dictated the race from the front. He was always winning.

The Japanese visitor Shahryar was a little disappointing in fourth while Frankie Dettori did not get the hood off Lord North cleanly which meant he lost 10 lengths and any chance at the start.

“It was a brilliant ride from Shane,” said O’Brien. “State Of Rest is a very tough horse. We decided to make the running. It could not have worked out better. He got the fractions perfect.

“It's very special. It's been a long time coming. It’s special to get a winner here and not only a winner, but to win a race like the Prince Of Wales's Stakes is hugely special.”

Crosse, 20, who would be better known here had he not missed the winning ride on Galileo Chrome in the 2020 St Leger because he had Covid, said: “There were five runners, I was