Australian and American interests come together in the opening race of Royal Ascot 2013 as Kentucky Derby and Dubai World Cup winner Animal Kingdom bids to claim the Queen Anne Stakes.

Australian and American interests come together in the opening race of Royal Ascot 2013 as Kentucky Derby and Dubai World Cup winner Animal Kingdom bids to claim the Queen Anne Stakes.

International winners have become common place at the Royal meeting, but American challengers are rare and Wesley Ward’s duo of Jealous Again and Strike That Tiger are the only ones to have carried a trophy back across theAtlanticwhen successful in 2009.

Animal Kingdom, trained inMarylandby English-born Graham Motion, jetted into theUKjust days after his Dubai World Cup success and has spent plenty of time acclimatising, with connections having worked him at the racecourse to give him a preview of the track ahead of the 1600 metre Group 1.

But it is not just America who will be cheering on the five-year-old, as Arrowfield Stud’s John Messara bought in to the imposing chestnut after he ran second to Wise Dan in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Mile.

Motion said: “What we are taking on is a huge challenge and he is probably a short price for what we are doing.

“When things look too good to be true, it makes me worry all the more. He still has to go out there and run his race and we are very much going into uncharted territory as there are so many variables – the weather, distance and doing the training here are all different.

“I'll never train another one like him. The horse has had a chequered career because of his injuries so it is all the more remarkable how he has kept his form.”

While the Queen Anne will be Animal Kingdom’s first attempt at a straight mile, Motion is not unduly worried with the horse having broken the mould on previous starts.

The trainer added:  “What he did in winning the Kentucky Derby was pretty extraordinary - he had never run on the dirt before and he ran with six weeks between races.

“Coming back in the Breeders’ Cup Mile without a prep race is not usually done in America and we almost pulled it off.

“I wanted to have an opportunity to prove the Kentucky Derby wasn't a fluke. I knew this horse was a very special horse and I'm just so glad we got the chance to prove it in the Breeders' Cup and then on the international stage in the Dubai World Cup.

“Royal Ascot is a bonus for me because I thoughtDubaiwas his last race. I feel very fortunate that these guys have taken on this very sporting challenge at Royal Ascot.”