Greg Wood
4pm DERBY STAKES preview
And so here we are: the most famous Classic of them all, and 14 runners vying to become the 247th horse on the Derby’s roll of honour. The rain overnight and this morning has changed the picture somewhat, but the trials have done their job in assembling a field full of possibilities and it is now up to the punters to draw their own conclusions. Is Benvenuto Cellini’s Chester Vase win the best form on offer, or the ding-dong between Maltese Cross and Bay Of Brilliance at Lingfield? Could Item be the fifth Dante winner this century to add the Derby to his record, or might Action or Christmas Day reverse the Knavesmire form? Is Ancient Egypt ready to live up to his pedigree and price tag for Kia Joorabchian and Charlie Johnston? Or maybe the Leopardstown Trial, where James J Braddock edged out Pierre Bonnard, will supply the winner for the first time since 2002. Could there even be a complete outsider that comes through on the rain-softened ground.
After many hours – in fact, weeks – of pondering, I came down in favour of Bay Of Brilliance as an each-way option, on the basis that the Lingfield form looks strong with a big gap back to the third horse home, he was making his debut there while the winner, Maltese Cross, had the benefit of a run, and Maltese Cross has also ended up with the worst of the draw in stall one. Any one of these nine horses, though, would be a plausible winner.
SELECTION: BAY OF BRILLIANCE
Greg Wood
3.15pm “DASH” HANDICAP preview
A furious charge down the fastest five-furlong strip in the world, and even on softening ground it will be over in a flash. A full field of 20 runners has been declared, but there are a couple of ways to whittle it down as the high numbers generally hold sway in races at the minimum trip, and the speedy nature of the track means that the pace tends to hold up and the closers do not get much leeway to challenge. Events unfolded along those lines in the equivalent race for three-year-olds yesterday, as Naana’s Shadow (first) and Shes Got A Brother (third) both helped to set a strong early gallop and the runner-up, Call Margot, ran out of racecourse as she launched a challenge from off the pace. Kinswoman, the favourite, and Lexington Buzz are likely to be up there from the off from stalls 17 and 10 respectively with Irish raider Eclairage, with Billy Loughnane booked to ride, in close attendance and I think the latter could be the one to back from stall 14.
SELECTION: ECLAIRAGE
2.40pm CORONATION CUP preview
Last year’s winner, last year’s Derby winner and the official top-rated horse on the planet: it’s quite the line-up for the Coronation Cup this year, albeit with the caveat that significant rain might see Calandagan, the World’s Best Racehorse in 2025, ruled out. He came up half-a-length short behind Jan Brueghel in this race 12 months ago, at a time when he seemed unable to go the extra yard and get a Group One win on the board, but he has subsequently been on an unbeaten five-race spree at the sport’s highest level, including wins in the King George & Queen Elizabeth Stakes and Champion Stakes at Ascot and the Japan Cup in November. He looks the one beat today, even in a race where both Lambourn and Jan Breughel can boast Group One-winning form over track and trip.
SELECTION: CALANDAGAN
Greg Wood
2.05pm PRINCESS ELIZABETH STAKES preview
The racing fates have not been particularly kind to Charlie Fellowes’s Shes Perfect thus far. She was first past the post in the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches – France’s equivalent of the 1,000 Guineas – in May 2025, only to be demoted to second in the stewards’ room for causing interference, and then missed the remainder of the season due to injury after her next race, in the Prix de Diane (French Oaks) in June. She looked as though her talent and enthusiasm remain intact, though, when finishing third in a Listed race at Goodwood last month, and with that race under her belt, Shes Perfect could well be the one to beat here. Depending on how much rain there has been overnight, Sparks Fly could be a live runner as she saves her best form for ground with some cut, and Arisaig, who was a head behind Shes Perfect at Goodwood, is also worth considering, although runners with her hold-up style often struggle at this track.
SELECTION: SHES PERFECT
Greg Wood
1.30pm TATTENHAM CORNER STAKES preview
A race that has been re-routed from its normal home at Haydock – which has serious issues with its ground at the moment – and while last year’s winner, Ten Bob Tony, is back for another crack, this is, obviously, a very different challenge. It is a distinctly stronger race too, with Never So Brave, a Group One winner at this trip last summer, heading the field, and the decidedly useful Alcantor, beaten less than a length in the Group One Prix du Moulin last September, also in the field for yesterday’s Oaks-winning trainer, Joseph O’Brien. The two runners with Group One form in the book dominate the betting, and Never So Brave, one of the most consistent horses in training once he gets up to speed, looks like the one to be with after a pipe-opener in a Group Two at Sandown in late April.
SELECTION: NEVER SO BRAVE
Welcome to Derby day and as Greg has pointed out conditions have been damp this morning at the track and though it has brightened up now you can be sure there will be more of the wet stuff around. How much we’re not quite sure but watch this space where we’ll have going updates, all the news and previews plus the betting and results once the action gets underway. There’s just one non-runner so far on the day:
4.40pm Cherryfield (Croydon) Lester Piggott Handicap
8 Be The Standard (Self Certificate, Not Eaten Up)
Greg Wood
Good afternoon from a damp but increasingly bright Epsom racecourse, where the 247th running of the Derby is due off at 4pm and, for the second year running, the weather has been refusing to play ball.
Twelve months ago, it was a yellow weather warning that persuaded much of the potential walk-up crowd to watch the premier Classic from the comfort of their sofa instead. As it turned out, the rain did not arrive until after the Derby, but this time around, pretty much everyone within a couple of hours’ travelling time will have woken up to leaden skies and steady drizzle.
There are, at least, no parking charges this year, so anyone turning up to from the Hill enclosure can bring the car and retreat to it for shelter as required, but it was still miserable luck for Epsom as it tries to revive the glamour and excitement of Derby days gone by.
But the weather is – whisper it – slowly improving, with blue sky and puffy white clouds replacing the previous slate-grey. And there is still a lot to look forward to this afternoon, as the Derby itself is a wide-open contest with a 2-1 favourite in Aidan O’Brien’s Benvenuto Cellini, and a host of live alternatives at bigger prices including Item, Pierre Bonnard, Maltese Cross, Bay Of Brilliance, James J Braddock, Christmas Day, AncientEgypt and Action. The fact that the King and Queen will be in attendance for the first time since Charles III succeeded the racing-mad Elizabeth II is a big positive for the event, too.
The early money today has been for Christmas Day, O’Brien’s apparent fourth-string on jockey bookings at least, who is down to around 14-1 from 25-1 overnight, while James JBraddock, trained by Aidan’s son, Joseph, is popular too following his win with Thundering On in the Oaks here yesterday.
The latest going news from Epsom is that, so far at least, the ground is holding up quite well, with the sprint course now good, good-to-soft in places (from good overnight) and the Derby course remaining good-to-soft, good in places.
A runner-by-runner guide to the Derby field is here, thoughts and tips for the big race and the rest of the ITV Racing card are here, and the latest news on the ground, betting moves, results and more will be here on the blog as the afternoon unfolds.
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