Trainer Hughie Morrison ended speculation on Monday lunchtime about whether Dante Stakes winner Telecaster would line up for the Derby when he announced that the colt had been supplemented for Saturday’s Classic at a cost of £85,000, writes Tony Paley. As expected, the favourite Sir Dragonet was also added to the now 15-strong field.
Morrison reported that Telecaster had worked well on the Lambourn gallops under his intended jockey Oisin Murphy on Monday morning and told the Racing Post: “We’re very happy with him so he has been supplemented and off we go. If he hadn’t been giving us the right signs this morning we wouldn’t have supplemented him. But watching him, he was pleasing to the eye and he pleased Oisin.”
Telecaster won what is traditionally one of the strongest Derby trial races, the Dante Stakes at York, beating subsequent Irish 2,000 Guineas runner-up Too Darn Hot in the process, but the trainer and owners Castle Down Racing had stated they would leave a decision about whether the horse would be added to the Epsom race until the last minute.
Asked how he thought Telecaster would cope with the step up to a mile and a half on Saturday, Morrison said: “I imagine it will suit, but he has lots of speed as we saw at York. He travels well and he showed enough pace at the end of the race to beat a very fast two-year-old in Too Darn Hot.”
“Based on the fact we’ve had no issues and he’s been in good form since the Dante, it was a relatively easy decision,” added Morrison. “The difficult part starts now, really – the next five days. By rights we should be waiting until Thursday to make a final decision, but we don’t envisage any problems and if there were any doubts we wouldn’t have done it.
“We’ve done it because it is the Derby. It is the responsibility of all of us to ensure that the Derby remains just that - the turf race of the season. Whatever happens on the day, it would be a lesser race if he wasn’t there.”
He said: “I can’t really look forward to it now and I’ll have five sleepless nights if I’m honest, worried that the horse might do something. He could stand on a stone or anything, it happens daily in every yard, so we’ll all be a bit nervous.”
Telecaster is available at 6-1, fourth favourite in the betting behind 3-1 market leader Sir Dragonet and two more Aidan O’Brien-trained colts in Broome (9-2) and Anthony Van Dyck (11-2).
Dragonet facing fast-ground Derby
Sir Dragonet is not going to get the same ground on which he was so impressive at Chester, writes Chris Cook. Weather-related predictions are, um, not exactly danger-free but we’re only five days from the greatest Classic and there is no sign of the precipitation that would surely help the favourite.
“The only threat of rain I can see in the forecast just now is in the next 48 hours,” Epsom’s clerk, Andrew Cooper, told me this morning. “It’s really confined to Tuesday afternoon and is expected to be showery in nature, so it’s hit and miss.
“I would still call it good ground this morning. It was last watered on Friday night. My thinking is, we’ll wait to see what the next 48 hours bring and then we’ve still got Wednesday and Thursday to step back in if we need to. These aren’t rapidly drying conditions.”
Cooper’s expectation is good ground for Friday’s Oaks card and then ground on the fast side of good for the Derby, when, happily, we should see the best temperatures of the week. That will be a new test for Sir Dragonet, who has had some ease in the ground for both his races so far. Can he be as good on a fast surface? We’ve got five days to decide.
Monday’s best bets, by Chris Cook
I’ve every hope that this week’s Classics will prove to be more solveable than today’s Zetland Gold Cup, the 14-runner handicap at Redcar that poses a significant challenge to punters. Still, I do like the claims of Epaulement (4.10) at 9-2.
Since he went into handicaps, Tom Dascombe’s four-year-old has only been out of the first two on one occasion, when fourth at Glorious Goodwood. That’s a great record of steady improvement and I reckon the soft ground prevented him getting a second win for the year at Chester last time. He scored over this course and distance in the autumn.
Half an hour later, Aiya (4.45) appeals at 13-2 in a handicap for older horses. This chestnut has been racing over a mile and a half but he’s still free-going, despite having been gelded in the winter, and I think this step back to 10 furlongs will help.
He’s on a very fair mark when things go right. A quick shufty at his pedigree shows that he’s a half-brother to Frozen Fire, which gives me mixed feelings; that Irish Derby winner had plenty of ability but did not seem keen on showing it latterly.
In the last at Windsor, Onebaba (5.25) will hopefully prove well treated on his handicap debut. He comes from the Michael Bell yard that is literally on fire, with eight winners in the past fortnight. He was last seen closing all the way to the line over seven furlongs at Wolverhampton on the eve of the Grand National and now steps up to a mile with a visor fitted. He’s 9-2 from an opening 6-1, though one firm briefly offered him at 11-1.
I’m going to give another chance to Sharp Getaway (1.35), a hurdler who I’m sure is handicapped to win something. He showed some promise on his handicap debut, then flopped at Uttoxeter three weeks ago. Blinkers are now tried and I’m evidently not the only one hoping they will work, as he’s 6-1 from 9s.
Chelmsford 1.25 Malotru 2.00 Nicky Baby 2.35 Poppy May 3.10 Arnoul Of Metz 3.45 Steaming 4.20 Seraphim 4.55 Javelin 5.30 Fairy Fast
Huntingdon 1.35 Sharp Getaway 2.05 Nimby 2.40 Chilli Romance 3.15 Cesar Du Gouet 3.50 Butlergrove King 4.25 Tel’Art 5.00 December Second
Leicester 1.45 Al Barg 2.20 Izvestia 2.55 Rathbone 3.30 Dubai Falcon
4.05 Arctic Ocean 4.40 Any Smile 5.15 Albert Boy
Redcar 1.50 Iva Go 2.25 In Trutina 3.00 Al Mortajaz 3.35 Wise Words 4.10 Epaulement (nap) 4.45 Aiya 5.20 Mr Coco Bean 5.55 Hayward Field
Windsor 1.55 Belated Breath 2.30 Ivatheengine 3.05 Firelight 3.40 Celtic Manor 4.15 Shareef Star 4.50 Mannaal 5.25 Onebaba (nb)
Cartmel 2.10 Onthefrontfoot 2.45 Frightened Rabbit 3.20 Doing Fine 3.55 Demi Sang 4.30 Princeton Royale 5.05 Stage One 5.40 Lostnfound
Tips by Chris Cook
Brighton 2.00 Tarrzan 2.30 Mamillius 3.00 Franz Kafka (nb) 3.30 Kachumba 4.00 Herm 4.30 Maazel 5.00 National Glory
Leicester 2.10 Beryl The Petal 2.40 Zuckerberg 3.10 Lady Lavinia 3.40 Allegiant 4.10 Isango 4.40 Platinum Star 5.10 Heatherdown
Redcar 2.20 Moonlighting 2.50 Fantastic Ms Fox 3.20 Rich Cummins 3.50 Zodiakos (nap) 4.20 Hamish 4.50 Dandy's Beano 5.20 Ascot Dreamer 5.55Who Told Jo Jo
Ayr 5.45 Shine Baby Shine 6.20 Last Empire 6.50 Jackhammer 7.20 Zoravan 7.50 Kupa River 8.20 Addis Ababa 8.50 Ishebayorgrey
Southwell 6.10 Spirit Of Angel 6.40 Chetwynd Abbey 7.10 Honey Gg 7.40 Gunmaker 8.10 Fly True 8.40 Cold Harbour
