Postponed to miss King George title defense

Trainer Roger Varian reported on his website Wednesday that Postponed, a hot favorite to repeat in Saturday's King George VI and Queen Elizabeth at Ascot, would miss the prestigious Group 1 due to a respiratory infection.

According to a statement, the five-year-old was found to have an unsatisfactory tracheal wash following his final piece of work on Wednesday morning.

"Up until this point, Postponed had not given us any worry during his training regime," Varian said. "However, we felt Postponed did not work with his usual zest this morning and a subsequent scope showed he is suffering from a respiratory infection.

"We will let the horse recover from this setback before making a plan of where he runs next. We still have many big days ahead to look forward to."

The King George field is now headlined by The Queen's Dartmouth and multiple Grade/Group 1 winner Highland Reel, who were separated by head when running one-two in last month's Hardwicke (G2) at Royal Ascot.

(Andrew Watkins/Dubai Racing Club)