James McDonald has added his name to the Royal Ascot honour roll alongside Mark Zahra, guiding Crimson Advocate to victory in the Group 2 Duke Of Cambridge Stakes.

Crimson Advocate, who had previously claimed the Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes over 1000m at Royal Ascot two years ago, struggled in last season’s King Charles III Stakes but returned this year for a shot at redemption over a much longer trip.

Now a four-year-old, she stepped out over a mile after building solid form this season. She finished runner-up to Soprano in the Listed Snowdrop Fillies’ Stakes (1600m) at Kempton before going one better at Goodwood in similar company.

“Coming into it, the questions were whether she would relax well enough and if she ran a stiff mile, but she ticked all those boxes,” McDonald said.

“She relaxed and gave me a beautiful ride. She was fantastic. She was bubbling underneath me the whole way and, the further the race went, the more she actually gave me.”

McDonald noted that when William Buick, aboard race favourite Cinderella’s Dream ($2.25), made his move with 300m to go, Crimson Advocate still had plenty left in reserve.

“She accelerated so quickly. She obviously has speed over five furlongs and, now she is stretching out over a mile, it bodes well for the future.”

The gravity of scoring another Royal Ascot win wasn’t lost on the world-class jockey, who now boasts 119 Group 1 wins to his name.

“It is really special to be here,” he added. “Royal Ascot is the most amazing carnival. Any opportunity to come to Royal Ascot, you take it with both hands, and it’s just a special place to be part of.”

McDonald famously partnered Nature Strip to a dominant win in the Group 1 King’s Stand Stakes (1000m) at Royal Ascot in 2022.