Israr was well on top of the line, as 2021 Derby and King George winner Adayar disappointed in the Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket.

Charlie Appleby’s Adayar was a long odds-on favourite to get back to winning ways following a meritorious run in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Back up to his favoured mile and a half on the July course, the 1-3 market leader was expected to take care of three rivals before heading to the King George and an attempt to reclaim the crown he won two years ago.

Everything appeared to be going smoothly three furlongs from home as Jim Crowley began to get serious with Israr, but Adayar was not pulling away.

As soon as Israr, trained by John and Thady Gosden, pulled level, William Buick began to send out distress signals but there was no response from Adayar, with Israr (7-2) ultimately pulling four and a half lengths clear.

Adayar returns to his “ideal trip” in the Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket on Thursday.

The bay son of Frankel, who won both the Derby and King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes in 2021, was last seen coming home third behind surprise winner Mostahdaf in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Trainer Charlie Appleby had hoped to get a Group One win over 10 furlongs on Adayar’s CV, but he returns to a mile and a half and drops back to Group Two company at Newmarket.

William Buick will team up with the five-year-old again in a race that has drawn a field of four, including stablemate Global Storm, with the rider confident a longer distance will play to his strengths.

“I’m really looking forward to seeing him back again,” Buick told Sky Sports Racing.

“He’s running over his ideal trip, a mile and a half, hopefully we can use that as a stepping stone for future targets.

“He still finished third (at Ascot), he was a bit slow away and there were a few things in the race that possibly didn’t quite suit. There’s plenty left there.”

John and Thady Gosden are hoping that rain arrives in time for Israr to show his best.

The Shadwell-owned colt has been beaten on both outings this term, having been short-headed by Haskoy in the Aston Park at Newbury and then when Quickthorn had his measure upped to a mile and three-quarters for the first time at York.

“Israr breezed on Saturday morning, and he will appreciate any rain that comes our way,” said John Gosden. “It is a fresh track on the first day (of the three-day meeting), but Charlie (Appleby) looks like he has got a stranglehold on the race.

“We are very pleased with him and he has run very well this year. A mile-six just stretched him last time at York, but he would appreciate to get his toe in.

“A mile and a half is his trip, but I will be having a good look at the ground. He ran very well at Newbury on his return, but he had his ground that day.

“He is one of those big horses that is coming through the ranks. He is a big, powerful horse who is improving with age when the conditions are there to suit.”

Charlie Fellowes is also doing a rain dance for Grand Alliance, who won the John Porter at Newbury before being well held by Pyledriver in the Hardwicke at Royal Ascot.

“Grand Alliance has come through the race at Ascot well,” said Fellowes. “I was really hoping that Newmarket was going to get a dump-load of rain on Monday night, but they have had very little.

“The ground would be quick at the moment and he won’t run if the ground remains quick – he wants some juice in the ground.

“No one seems to have a clue what the forecast is going to do at the moment, but with all these isolated storms around, we’ve declared him, just on the off-chance something hits.

“I’m afraid he will be a very unlikely runner unless something comes out of nowhere.

“He is a good horse and beat some very good horses at Newbury earlier in the year, so we will see.

“He’s still got the King George entry, but he wants soft ground. On soft ground, he is a very good horse, but on quick ground you might as well go home.”

In the other Group Two contest on the card, nine horses are scheduled to line up in the Kingdom Of Bahrain July Stakes.

Alice Haynes hopes Maximum Impact can answer a few questions that remained after his lacklustre run at Royal Ascot.

The Amo Racing-owned Havana Grey colt went into the Windsor Castle unbeaten after two wins over five furlongs at Leicester and over course and distance.

However, equipped with a tongue-tie, the second-favourite failed to fire and finished last of the 23 runners behind Big Evs.

Haynes feels he may have been over-awed by the experience and said: “He had been running in four or five-runner fields and he got surrounded by 22 others.

“He is a little bit of a timid colt and nothing ever came to light – there was nothing wrong with him, so we go again on Thursday.

“He had been working in a tongue tie and I just want to take everything off him this time and get his confidence back.”

Norfolk Stakes runner-up Malc goes up to six furlongs for the first time.

An easy Carlisle winner on his debut for Richard Fahey, the Calyx colt found only Valiant Force too good At Royal Ascot.

Fahey said: “We were delighted with him at Ascot. We’ve been happy with him since he’s come home and I should imagine six (furlongs) would suit him.

“He was 66-1 at Ascot, but we fancied him, as he had been working well before Ascot, so it wasn’t a big surprise.

“I think this will suit him better than five now, so fingers crossed.”

Luxembourg and Adayar look set renew rivalry at Ascot next month after filling the places in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes.

The Aidan O’Brien-trained Luxembourg was the marginal favourite at 2-1 for what appeared a strong renewal of the feature event on day two of the Royal meeting and set out to make every yard of the running in the hands of Ryan Moore.

The three-time Group One winner was powerless to resist the late surge of the impressive Mostahdaf, but stuck to his guns to fill the runner-up spot and O’Brien is keen to step up to a mile and a half in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes on July 29.

“We’re very happy and the winner won very well,” said the Ballydoyle handler.

“The plan was that we would have a look at the King George after this anyway. That’s possible, so we’ll see how he is. He was always going to get a mile and a half well.”

Adayar won the Derby and the King George during the summer of 2021 and Charlie Appleby was keen to enhance his potential stallion value by bagging a Group One over a mile and a quarter this term.

However, after seeing his charge beaten four and a half lengths by Mostahdaf, the Moulton Paddocks maestro admitted he appears to be “crying out” for a return to a longer trip, therefore another King George challenge appears the logical target.

“The way the race was set up wasn’t ideal for us. He was a little bit tardy from the gate and we wanted to either be on the lead or sit second to the American horse, but we ended up in the spot we thought Ryan might end up, that was our plan,” he said.

“I was pleased with the horse in respects to the fractions that were set, it was set up for a turn of foot at the end and the winner is good at that.

“I feel for our fella, we’ll step back up to a mile and a half now and go for the King George, that’s what he’s crying out for.

“We’ve had a go over 10 furlongs with him, but against the very best he’s just come up a little short a couple of times. But I’m not walking away too disappointed. If he can reclaim the King George, we’ll be very happy.”