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The Derby may not have had the look of a vintage renewal beforehand, but there’s little doubt we saw an above-average winner in Golden Horn, one who will take all the beating wherever he turns up for the rest of the campaign.
There were few hard-luck stories in the 2015 Investec Derby and it’s difficult to escape the conclusion that we saw a fair and representative result on Saturday, a strong pace on a sound surface helping to separate the wheat from the chaff and allowing the best horses to come to the fore. In beating stable companion Jack Hobbs by three and half lengths with a further four and a half lengths back to Storm the Stars in third, the unbeaten Golden Horn established himself as a top-class performer, his rating of 131p marking him down as the best winner of the race since Workforce bolted up in 2010. That horse went on to win the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, and Golden Horn may ultimately be aimed at Longchamp, though he will reportedly be dropped back to 10 furlongs in the short-term, with the Eclipse – staged at Sandown in early-July – the next obvious target.
A clash with 2000 Guineas winner Gleneagles, or the French Derby hero New Bay, would be a mouth-watering prospect and such a mid-summer clash could indeed be the highlight of the season. Golden Horn would undoubtedly deserve to head the market for such a race, however, as his post-Derby rating puts him 5 lb clear of Gleneagles (126) and 8 lb ahead of New Bay (123p). In fact, Golden Horn’s rating of 131p marks him down as the highest-rated horse in Europe.
Golden Horn may be the highest-rated horse in Europe – 1 lb ahead of Solow – but he’s not the highest-rated horse in the world, that accolade shared by Japan Cup winner Epiphaneia, five-time Grade 1 winner Shared Belief and Triple Crown winner American Pharoah. American Pharoah’s Timeform rating of 132p doesn’t derive from Saturday’s success in the Belmont Stakes– it comes from his Kentucky Derby win which has been reassessed – but we did see the performance of a top-class horse in New York. American Pharoah – who was bidding to become the first horse in 37 years to win the Triple Crown – was always in control at the head of affairs and had plenty in reserve down the stretch, drawing five lengths clear to register a momentous success. Victorious on all seven starts since beaten on debut, American Pharoah has even more to offer and his class allied with versatility identifies him as an outstanding racehorse.
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Only four runners went to post in the Coronation Cup at Epsom on Saturday, with the market headed by French duo Dolniya and Flintshire. It was the Pat Dobbs-ridden Pether's Moon who prevailed, however, as he produced a career-best effort to register a first Group 1 victory for horse and rider. Pether’s Moon (121) is a likeable, consistent sort who can boast a decent strike rate at a lower level, but you get the feeling he was the only horse to truly fire in what was a muddling race, and he’ll have his work cut out to add to his top-level tally.
There was an even bigger shock in the Investec Oaks as 50/1 shot Qualify – available at 100/1 on the morning of the race – prevailed by a short-head from favourite and 1000 Guineas winner Legatissimo. Qualify (114) was seemingly one of the most exposed fillies in the field, but she’s bred for stamina – Fastnet Rock out of a Park Hill runner-up – and showed-much improved form for the step up to a mile and a half. There was no element of fluke to Qualify’s success, but it was a rather messy race with a number of horses meeting interference, while the early gallop was just a steady one, so the victor has been rated slightly lower than an average Oaks winner.
Legatissimo was strictly below the level of form she showed when winning the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket, but she arguably enhanced her profile, underlining her versatility by going so close to completing a rarely-achieved classic double. Legatissimo’s performance can arguably be marked up as she had to make rapid headway having been slightly shuffled back, and she seems certain to register further top-level success.
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There was a significant performance in the Woodcote stakes as Buratino (107) put up the second-best effort from a juvenile this season when blitzing his rivals by six lengths. Buratino had no answer to King of Rooks at Sandown, but he was much improved at Epsom on Saturday, really impressing with the manner in which he drew clear, and he’ll be a leading player in the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Multiple Group 1 winner Conduit first served notice of his potential when blitzing his rivals in the opening 10-furlong handicap on Derby Day, and Stravagante – who hails from the same yard – also won in the style of a horse with Group-race aspirations. Stravagante (111p) had been no match for Jack Hobbs on his seasonal bow, but the form of that race has worked out exceptionally well and he was a different proposition here, impressing with a sustained charge down the outside that saw him cross the line with a three-and-a-quarter length advantage. He’s very much a horse to follow.
Another handicap performance at Epsom worth highlighting is that of Al Bandar’s as his win paid Doncaster conqueror Always Smile a hefty compliment six days after Sahaafy had boosted the form in no uncertain terms through his wide-margin Newmarket win. Godolphin’s unbeaten filly is almost certainly a pattern-class performer and her progress is worth noting closely.