Next week’s Derby is a hotter race than most people have realised, according to John Gosden, trainer of Golden Horn, who has been a favourite for the race since it became his definite target 10 days ago. Gosden now expects to be double-handed in the race as his Jack Hobbs will run if the ground is not too fast, and both horses pleased him as they galloped round Tattenham Corner here on Tuesday morning during the Breakfast With The Stars media event.
But the trainer expressed discomfort when it was put to him that he had an excellent chance of what would be his second Derby success and pointed in particular to the overseas raiders Zawraq, Epicuris and Sumbal as he stressed what a difficult race it would be to win a week on Saturday. “You’re a little bit underestimating those horses,” Gosden said.
“And you know Aidan O’Brien’s will go off and make sure it’s a strong pace, so anything that doesn’t stay will be exposed. So I think it’s a lot more contentious race than people think. We’ve got two nice horses but I think there’s a lot more depth in the field than people are reckoning.”
One colt that Gosden does not expect to face here is Gleneagles, a dual Guineas winner that remains a possible runner for O’Brien, even though his stamina would clearly be doubtful for the mile and a half of this race. “I think I’m pretty clear about what Ballydoyle are going to do, even if they’re staying tight-lipped themselves,” Gosden said. “I think they’ll leave the brilliant miler at a mile.
“It’s a bit like asking me if I’d run Kingman in the Derby – no I wouldn’t. I think they’ll be tempted to supplement the filly.” That was a reference to Found, currently third-favourite for the Oaks, in which her owners would have a strong hand even without her.
Gosden was happy with the way his two colts handled the tricky contours of Epsom on this preliminary visit, having seen the laid-back Golden Horn under Frankie Dettori quickening easily past his lead horse before being eased down well before the winning line. The trainer may have been surprised to see William Buick on Jack Hobbs whizzing past at a much greater speed moments later, having left the lead horse far behind.
Gosden, an old-hand at working with valuable horseflesh, nevertheless described himself as being much more relaxed in his job since a deal was done to sell half of Jack Hobbs to Godolphin, having found the immense, world-wide interest in buying the horse “quite stressful”.
“I wasn’t enjoying it. From the moment he won at Wolverhampton [in December], the phone virtually never stopped ringing, so in the end I left an agent in charge of it. It’s a distraction, for me, you don’t need it, when you’re training you want to do everything right by the horse.”
Qatar Racing may also have a strong hand in the Classic, as the German-based pair Karpino and Rogue Runner as well as the French-trained Sumbal could join their Elm Park in the Derby line-up. None of the foreign-based trio are shorter than 20-1 in the betting, while Elm Park is joint-third in the list.
Even so, Qatar’s retained jockey, Andrea Atzeni, insisted on keeping his options open when put on the spot here about which horse he would ride, declining to give an answer. It was the only response a diplomatic rider could give but some bookmakers chose to see it as reflecting poorly on Elm Park, Betfred pushing him out to 7-1 from 11-2.
Sumbal, who is thought to have a preference for soft going, has an alternative entry in Sunday’s French Derby where the ground is very likely to suit him. The Qatari team will defer a decision until Thursday whilst keeping an eye on the forecast for Epsom, but there is presently not much rain expected.
A Coolmore representative confirmed that Gleneagles was more likely to run next at Royal Ascot than in the Derby, though no final decision on Aidan O’Brien’s runners in the Classic is likely to be made public before the weekend. Hans Holbein and Kilimanjaro remain the only colts in his stable regarded as definite contenders.
Meanwhile, Criquette Head-Maarek confirmed that her Epicuris, a Group One winner as a juvenile, would be aimed at the Epsom race rather than the French equivalent this Sunday, which had been the original plan. The French authorities have refused permission for Epicuris to be attended at the start by Nicolas Blondeau, who helped him pass a stalls test last week after the horse had previously refused to enter the starting gate.
The British authorities, apparently, will raise no such difficulty. Epicuris is a general 25-1 shot for the Derby.
The British Horseracing Authority announced on Tuesday that it has charged the apprentice jockey Matthew Hopkins with betting on horse racing, including one lay bet. Officials insist no detail about the allegations will be provided until after the hearing, set for 25 June.
Hopkins, who has ridden 27 winners in Britain, relinquished his licence in November and has not ridden since. He is believed to be working in racing as a stable lad.
