The British Horseracing Authority has put Ombudsman’s repeat Prince of Wales’s Stakes victory at Royal Ascot at the centre of the 2026 ratings conversation after calling it the best performance seen anywhere in the world this year.
The Godolphin horse, trained by John and Thady Gosden and ridden by William Buick at Ascot, won the Group 1 showpiece for a second successive season last week.
The BHA’s latest handicapper update, published on Tuesday, says Head of Handicapping Dominic Gardiner-Hill has reviewed the performance and confirmed Ombudsman’s new official mark after what the governing body described as a standout global effort.
Ombudsman Sets Older-Horse Standard After Ascot
The timing matters. Royal Ascot has only just reset the Flat pecking order, and Ombudsman’s dominance over ten furlongs now gives the older-horse division a clear benchmark heading into the midsummer Group 1 programme.
For Godolphin, it also strengthens a season already built around elite international targets.
Ombudsman’s ‘back-to-back’ Ascot success gives him a rare profile: proven at the meeting, effective at championship tempo, and now endorsed by the British handicapper as the performance standard for 2026.
The BHA said in its latest Ombudsman ratings update that Gardiner-Hill had assessed the win after several days’ reflection, underlining how significant the Prince of Wales’s Stakes form is likely to become.
Ombudsman become the first repeat winner of the Prince of Wales’s Stakes since Muhtarram won the race in 1994 and 1995 – he was also trained by John Gosden.
WATCH: Ombudsman Winning The Prince Of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot in 2026
