Wokingham hero Double Rush put away for next year

There will be no further opportunities for Double Rush to add to his impressive 2026 haul as connections draw stumps for the season, already dreaming of a Royal Ascot repeat next year.

Switched to Andrew Balding to be the lead horse for the ill-fated Gewan in the off season, fate decided Double Rush himself would star in the Ace Stud silks this term, racking up a hat-trick in the first half of the campaign which culminated in Wokingham Stakes glory at the Royal meeting in June.

Subsequently tried in elite company, he finished down the field in the July Cup before being touched off at Listed level at York in what ultimately will be his final outing for the year.

Paul Curran, racing and bloodstock manager for the owners, said: “He ran admirably up at York the last time but it was a little bit disappointing given the step back in class to Listed from the July Cup.

“We’ve done a bit of an evaluation on him and he’s had a long year racing. He’s gone from 90 to 110 in the ratings and wanting to do right by him we’ve decided to put him away for the rest of the year and bring him back fresh early next season.

“We think this will prove the right decision and we avoided Haydock (Sprint Cup) which would have been an absolute mud bath, but it was disappointing a day later at York.”

He went on: “He’s done nothing wrong this year and we want him fully firing for next year. He’s done plenty this year and the July Cup was a huge step up in class off a heavy three months of racing.

“We just don’t want to blemish him too much and he’s given us a lot of joy this year, especially when winning the Wokingham, so we just want to do right by him and he’ll be fine next year for sure.

“We’re already thinking of plans working into Ascot again next year and he’ll be fine, he’s just going to get the break he deserves and we’ll see him again in the spring.”