Hugo Palmer Blog | Royal Ascot Day Four
18 Jun 2026
Coral Racing Ambassador, Hugo Palmer, sends four runners to Royal Ascot on Friday, including Fitzella in the Group 1 Commonwealth Cup at 15:05.
15:05 Ascot – Fitzella
One filly I'm particularly looking forward to seeing this week is Fitzella. I don't think we've really seen the best of her yet and looking back, we probably got things slightly wrong with her earlier in the season. We tried to bring her along steadily through the spring and then perhaps rushed her back a little quicker than we should have done. As trainers, you are always learning and occasionally you look back and think you might have done things differently.
The important thing now is that she's thriving, she looks fantastic, she's moving well at home and seems very happy in herself. The ground won't be a concern and, although she's one of the outsiders in the field, that might actually play to her advantage. There's a chance she could be left alone out in front and, if that happens, I can see her sticking on and giving a very good account of herself. She's certainly in much better order now and deserves her chance.
17:00 Ascot – Brigid's Well & Blingy's Sister
We're taking a little bit of a gamble with Brigid's Well, but she's a filly we've always liked. We've tried to make our own running plans with her, and she's been working nicely at home. She's a neat, straightforward filly and although this is a competitive race, she's in good shape and should run well if things fall her way.
Blingy's Sister should come on her from her run at Newbury. This will be her first attempt over 1m, but if she settles well, she should get the trip. Hopefully, the two fillies can outrun their odds here.
18:10 Ascot – Tricky Tel
Tricky Tel had to run recently to get into this race, but I thought he did extremely well, showing plenty of toughness and continuing to find when asked. It was a very pleasing effort and suggested he's coming to hand at just the right time.
As always at Ascot, so much depends on how the race unfolds and whether you get the breaks when you need them. But all of ours seem in good order and we're looking forward to seeing how they get on.
Hugo Palmer, Coral Racing Ambassador
15:05 Ascot – Fitzella
One filly I'm particularly looking forward to seeing this week is Fitzella. I don't think we've really seen the best of her yet and looking back, we probably got things slightly wrong with her earlier in the season. We tried to bring her along steadily through the spring and then perhaps rushed her back a little quicker than we should have done. As trainers, you are always learning and occasionally you look back and think you might have done things differently.
The important thing now is that she's thriving, she looks fantastic, she's moving well at home and seems very happy in herself. The ground won't be a concern and, although she's one of the outsiders in the field, that might actually play to her advantage. There's a chance she could be left alone out in front and, if that happens, I can see her sticking on and giving a very good account of herself. She's certainly in much better order now and deserves her chance.
17:00 Ascot – Brigid's Well & Blingy's Sister
We're taking a little bit of a gamble with Brigid's Well, but she's a filly we've always liked. We've tried to make our own running plans with her, and she's been working nicely at home. She's a neat, straightforward filly and although this is a competitive race, she's in good shape and should run well if things fall her way.
Blingy's Sister should come on her from her run at Newbury. This will be her first attempt over 1m, but if she settles well, she should get the trip. Hopefully, the two fillies can outrun their odds here.
18:10 Ascot – Tricky Tel
Tricky Tel had to run recently to get into this race, but I thought he did extremely well, showing plenty of toughness and continuing to find when asked. It was a very pleasing effort and suggested he's coming to hand at just the right time.
As always at Ascot, so much depends on how the race unfolds and whether you get the breaks when you need them. But all of ours seem in good order and we're looking forward to seeing how they get on.
Hugo Palmer, Coral Racing Ambassador
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