At 12:40 p.m. on May 31, HMS Ardent reported smoke to the east. Beatty, who was at the head of the fleet, passed a Danish steamer heading west, which sent a message to Beatty:"several cruisers spotted straight ahead". Thinking he had found Hipper's squadron, Beatty sped towards the group at full speed. To lay his trap, Beatty asked the bulk of his fleet to stay behind the horizon line in order to make the Germans believe that they had the numerical advantage. Jellicoe's fleet followed closely behind Beatty's, ready to deliver the final blow.
But the German fleet was ready, and had spotted HMS Lion at 3:10 p.m., followed by Princess Royal, Queen Mary, Tiger, New Zealand and Indefatigable. The German formation, commanded by Luztow, dispersed to the north, exposing Derfflinher, Seydlitz, Moltke and Von Der Tann.