Home / The latest sports news with betting.co.uk / Horse Racing Betting Tips

Horse Racing Betting Tips - Saturday 25 July 2026 - King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes

Racing Gav

TwitterDiscord

Racing Tipster

Publish Date: 25/07/2026

Fact checked by: Jordan Noble

Key Points

Today’s betting tip is unbeaten over this C&D
This horse is weighted to beat his main rival
I believe there is value in his price

It’s King George Weekend at Ascot, and the highlight of the day is the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes. Today’s betting tip runs in that key race and I think he is overpriced!

But before I delve into the horse, let me introduce myself. I’m RacingGav, the resident horse racing expert here at Betting.co.uk and I’ve been here since March 2025. I provide free horse racing tips and other racing-related content which includes big race trends, educational guides and horses and trainers to follow.

Speaking of which, I put up five horses to follow for July 2026, of which two have already won, and another one runs next week. With two winners already in the bag, I’m hoping for a hat trick on Tuesday.

Betting advice

15:35 Ascot - Calandagan @ 7/4 - 2pt Win

Get £20 in free bets today with PricedUp!

At the time of writing, PricedUp has the best horse racing odds for Calandagan to win the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes. They are currently offering 7/4, which looks excellent value to me! If you don’t already have an account at PricedUp, there’s a handy free bet deal you can claim. If you sign up and bet £40, you'll get £20 in free bets. Plenty of scope to enjoy the weekend’s racing.

Calandagan can land his seventh Group 1 here!

What a horse Calandagan has been for his connections, and the sport as a whole! His CV is littered with top level victories, and he’s not done yet. In this article, I’ll tell you why I think he can win the King George again today.

Calandagan is unbeaten over C&D

Not every horse performs at Ascot, so Calandagan’s phenomenal form here is worth its weight in gold. He has recorded three wins from four starts, and his only defeat was very excusable, as the going was unfavourably soft going, and he met trouble in-running. Even then he was still only beaten half a length. With a clearer run and/or better ground, he would have been away and gone.

What's also worth noting is his record over 1m 4f at Ascot. He’s had these conditions just twice in his career to date and he’s won both times. In 2024, he bolted up by six lengths in the King Edward VII Stakes (Group 2) over this C&D. Then he won last year’s renewal of this prestigious King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes, defeating the reopposing Kalpana.

Calandagan is weighted to beat his main rival

According to the betting market, Calandagan's main rival is the Japanese raider Masquerade Ball. However, it looks like a tough task for Masquerade Ball. When the pair met up in Tokyo, Calandagan hit the front with a furlong to run. The pair then got into a ding dong battle where Masquerade Ball managed to get his nose in front for a bit. But at the line, Calandagan was stronger and managed to win by a head.

I get the angle. Masquerade Ball was only beaten by a head that day, and he is also younger and less exposed. Therefore, people will argue there is more scope for improvement with Masquerade Ball than Calandagan. However, Masquerade Ball received 5lb that day and still got beaten, but today, the pair race off level weights. Furthermore, Masquerade Ball has questions to answer. Has he improved? Will he handle the journey to the UK? Will he handle Ascot? For me, it’s a lot of question marks for the price.

I believe there is value in Calandagan’s price

My view is that Calandagan will uphold the form against Masquerade Ball, but waht about the rest of the field? Benvenuto Cellini has huge potential, but this is a big step up and he needs to prove himself against older and more experienced horses. Minnie Hauk deserves credit, but needs to find 7lb and only receives 3lb, plus she's likely being targeted for the Arc. That leaves Goliath, Kalpana, Wurttemberg, Lambourn and Action, none of which worry me a great deal.

I think Calandagan’s biggest danger is himself. His hold up style looks fantastic when it comes off, and in fairness, it works more often than not. However, it does leave him susceptible to finding trouble in running and not catching the leaders before the line. With a clear run, I think he wins. Without one, he may not get away with it against this level of opposition. I’d say even money would be fair here, last year he went off at 11/10, albeit in a smaller field, but I can see history repeating itself, so I think there is juice in his current 7/4.

Can Calandagan retain his King George crown?

The positives for Calandagan are clear. He is the best horse in the race on paper, he clearly thrives over C&D and he has already beaten his main rival on better terms. Likewise, he has beaten the opposing Kalpana previously. I think he can take care of the Japanese raider, especially with the 5lb weight swing and the race taking place at Ascot.

In terms of negatives, the main is his hold up style. If he gets beaten, I think it will be because he runs into trouble. Especially with Ballydoyle chucking four at the race, as they will be trying their best to be a nuisance. Other than that, it is very hard to pick fault with Calandagan.

All aspects considered, I think 7/4 is a value price for Calandagan. If I had to choose, I’d say Benevenuto Cellini and Minnie Hauk will follow him home, not necessarily in that order. If the going was softer, Kalpana might have finished in the first three, but on ground like this, I can pass over her.

If you like a bet, check these offers out!

Every bookmaker wants you to bet with them. As a result, they put up fantastic free bet offers to get your attention. You'll see five of these offers listed below, and they're well worth taking the time to explore.

Want more RacingGav content? Join my Discord!

While I publish several articles per week for Betting.co.uk, the vast majority of my content is exclusive to members of my Discord server. It’s the only place where you can access all of my betting tips and much more!

My Discord launched back in January 2024 and it’s still going now, so I must be doing something right!

I’m sure you are wondering how much all of this will cost you? Well, it’s just £14.99 per month - less than 50p per day!

Alternatively, you may prefer a longer-term commitment for savings:

Quarterly: £34.99 (saves £9.98)
Bi-Annually: £74.99 (saves £14.95)
Annually: £149.99 (saves £29.89)

I’m so confident that you’ll enjoy the Discord that I offer a 7-day free trial. And I’m also confident that my tips will make a profit, so if you join and don’t make a profit across your first 30 days, I’ll refund your subscription fee!

If you want to know more, my DMs are always open on X – @RacingGav