Run over a mile-and-three-quarters and open to horses aged four years and upwards, the Copper Horse Stakes is a relatively recent addition to the Royal Ascot programme, having been run for the first time in 2020. A handicap, currently scheduled as the final race on the opening day, it is named after the Copper Horse, a monumental bronze statue of King George III, on horseback, which marks the southern end of the tree-line avenue, known as the Long Walk, in nearby Windsor Great Park.
The inaugural running of the Copper Horse Stakes was Fujaira Prince, trained by Roger Varian and ridden by Andrea Atzeni, who followed up in the Ebor Handicap at York two months later. Fujaira Prince was one of three winning favourites in just six renewals of the Copper Horse Stakes so far, the others being the former Triumph Hurdle winner Vauban, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Ryan Moore, in 2023 and French Master, trained by John and Thady Gosden and ridden by James Doyle, in 2025. Indeed, Mullins and the Gosdens are, jointly, the leading trainers, with two winners apiece.
The 2022 winner, Get Shirty, trained by David O’Meara and ridden by Daniel Tudhope, followed up in the Old Newton Cup at Haydock before finishing a creditable fifth in the Ebor Handicap. So, even in its short history, it appears that the Copper Horse Stakes, while a prestigious and valuable contest in its own right, worth £110,000 in total prize money, has already become an important mid-summer target for stayers just below Pattern class. It is also worth noting that all six winners, including 33/1 chance Amtiyaz, who was the longest-priced winner so far, were officially rated 95 or higher, and hence carried 9st 1lb or more. That said, none of them had previously won a Group race of any description.