NORTH YORKSHIRE’S David O’Meara added to his burgeoning reputation as 25-1 shot Amazing Maria handed him his second Royal Ascot victory with a surprise success in the Duke of Cambridge Stakes.

O’Meara, who is based at Nawton, in Ryedale, broke his Royal Ascot duck when Louis The Pious landed last year’s Buckingham Palace Stakes, but yesterday’s win in a Group Two contest was a much more notable triumph.

With odds-on favourite Integral failing to live up to expectations, Amazing Maria gate-crashed the party in style as she produced a perfect late charge in the hands of James Doyle.

Having shown plenty of promise as a two-year-old for Ed Dunlop, the daughter of Mastercraftsman lost her way last season, but like so many horses before her, the move to O’Meara has reenergised her and she eventually ran out a comfortable two-length winner from the Clive Brittain-trained Rizeena.

“She was brilliant,” said O’Meara. “We brought her here for a fillies’ handicap on her first run this season. We felt she travelled well, but that she arrived a bit too soon.

“We then took her to Ireland where she didn’t get enough cover, but she still finished off well so we thought we would take our chance over the straight mile again but hold her up more.

“As long as we didn’t get there too soon she had a chance, and James has given her a great ride. When she was sent to me, I was told that she was a really good filly. You can just do what we do with them – some are success stories, and she is one of them.”

Doyle was able to celebrate his first winner of the Royal meeting, but was quick to pay tribute to O’Meara’s injured stable jockey, Daniel Tudhope.

“I feel bad for Danny,” said Doyle. “First of all, he should be riding her. I’ve been lucky to get a few nice rides for David in the past and even though they might be a big price, you should never discount them.”

County Durham trainer Michael Dods has another sprinting star on his hands after two-year-old filly Easton Angel produced a career-best display to finish second in the Queen Mary Stakes.

The juvenile, who is part-owned by Al Shaqab Racing after the Qatar-based group bought a part share following her win in the Hilary Needler at Beverley, produced a fantastic performance to finish behind American superstar Acapulco.

Acapulco was backed off the boards as the 5-2 favourite, and justified the punters’ faith as she burst clear to claim an authoritative success.

Easton Angel was much the best of the rest though, and she might well have got closer than a length and half had she not been drawn on the opposite side of the track to the winner.

“She ran superbly, although nobody is happy finishing second,” said Dods. “She ran her heart out, and Paul (Mulrennan) said if he she was drawn more over this way, she would have given the other horse a race. She was isolated in stall one, but we’re still delighted with her.

“She battles, and you wouldn’t have thought she’d had a race with the way she was looking afterwards. There are some good races in her. Paul says she will get six furlongs, but we will sit down now and see where she goes.”

Dods is satisfied he made the right decision to withdraw Mecca’s Angel ahead of Tuesday’s King’s Stand Stakes, and is looking forward to running his more experienced sprint star on softer ground towards the end of the season.

“On reflection, I’m sure we did the right thing,” he said. “We’ve still got a really nice horse and I’m sure she’ll win a Group One when she gets her ground. She’s entered in the Sapphire Stakes in Ireland (on July 18) and the Nunthorpe (at York) and then you’ve obviously got the Abbaye (at Longchamp) to look at as well.”

Dermot Weld’s Free Eagle landed the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes as he held off the Kevin Ryan-trained The Grey Gatsby in a thrilling finish.

The 5-2 favourite missed his intended reappearance at the Curragh last month because of a head cold, but Weld was always confident he would do himself justice yesterday and will now target his lightly-raced four-year-old at the Irish Champion Stakes and Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.

“This horse has bags of courage and is a hard horse to beat,” said Weld. “He had a stress fracture of the tibia last year and had to miss all the Classics. We got him back for the Champion Stakes and that was run on heavy ground.

“The plan was to start him in the Tattersalls Gold Cup, but he got a bad head cold which delayed his comeback and his work. Fitness was my biggest concern, but I had him as good as I could have with the limited preparation he’d had.”