MUTAKAYYEF won the Group 2 Fred Cowley MBE Memorial Summer Mile Stakes at Ascot on Saturday for the second year running, writes Dave Wright.

It was a brave effort by the six-year-old gelding trained by William Haggas at Newmarket as he finished lame, forcing jockey Dane O’Neill to dismount before returning to the winner’s enclosure.

The horse was later found to have ligament damage and is out for the rest of the season.

Mutakayyef went off as the 4-7 favourite, having been runner-up in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot last time.

Haggas was not at Ascot, but he later said: “I was a bit worried about the ground as they had a bit of rain there, but he won well.

“I would like to go to the Sussex (at Goodwood) with him, but I will talk to Sheikh Hamdan.”

Mutakayyef was the second leg of a double on the card for owner Sheikh Hamdan and O’Neill, with the Owen Burrows-trained Laraaib (2/1 favourite) stretching his unbeaten record to three in the Playboy Club London Handicap.

The most valuable handicap of the afternoon, the totescoop6 Heritage Handicap, went to Mick Appleby’s Danzeno.

The 4/1 favourite burned up the Ascot turf over the five furlongs, scoring by three-quarters of a length in the hands of Silvestre de Sousa.

Appleby said: “That was brilliant. He’ll go for the Stewards’ Cup at Goodwood now. Hopefully, he can keep going.”

De Sousa had also registered a win at Ascot on Friday, aboard Rufus King in the Knights 1759 Nursery Handicap Stakes. But it came at a small cost as the stewards found him guilty of “using his whip in an incorrect place” and suspended him for two days (July 28 and July 30).

Another jockey to get a similar ban was Steve Drowne, who had used his whip above the permitted level when steering Lightning Charlie to victory in the Long Harbour Derek Lucie-Smith Memorial Stakes.

Ascot is now busily preparing for one of the highlights of the feature races of the whole season – the QIPCO-sponsored King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes a week on Saturday, July 29.

It is regarded as Europe’s premier mid-season middle-distance championship race for horses of both sexes and all ages.

The Winning Post Enclosure is already sold out, but tickets are available for the King Edward VII Enclosure at £85 if purchased in advance and Queen Anne Enclosure at £28 (in advance).