Sixteen Face Derby Challenge

SIXTEEN FACE DERBY CHALLENGE 
Australia (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) will face 15 rivals in tomorrow’s G1 Investec Derby at Epsom, with Aidan O’Brien’s much-vaunted colt set to break from stall 12 in his bid to provide Coolmore with a fourth consecutive renewal and his trainer with a fifth overall. As with the recent blue riband heroes Sir Percy (GB), New Approach (Ire), Sea the Stars (Ire) and Camelot (GB), Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor and Teo Ah Khing’s chestnut launched his season in the 
G1 2000 Guineas and, like that quartet, performed to a high standard over Newmarket’s undulating Rowley Mile. There were shades of Hawk Wing in his admirable effort five weeks ago, as he dominated the stand’s-side group as his predecessor had 12 years earlier only to lose out overall by less than a horse-length. Despite his exploits there, Australia’s destiny has always lain over this trip and arguably at this track, where his sire took command of proceedings 13 years ago and his dam, Ouija Board (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}), first showed her true mettle in the Friday Classic in 2004. Lammtarra was the last to win this for a Derby-winning sire and Oaks-winning dam 19 years ago, and Joseph O’Brien is aware of the heavily-favoring portents for his mount. “He’s bred to stay the trip, he’s bred to handle the track and he’s probably bred to win the Derby, which is what you need heading here,” he said. “It’s a great test of a racehorse. Since he came into the yard and started working, he was always a very good horse–he has plenty of pace and is well-balanced, and his mum and dad both handled the track well.” 

The ‘True Story’ of the Draw… 
While the draw has a negligible impact on this twisting-and-turning path to Tesio’s famed winning post, the bare statistics cast a shadow over those exiting from the first two stalls over this track and trip. Not since Oath (Ire) (Fairy King) provided Sir Henry Cecil with his last renewal in the white bridle of The Thoroughbred Corporation in 1999 has a colt prevailed from one or two, but a closer study of the facts suggest that the vast majority who raced from the inside posts in the interim lacked the requisite class to make an impact here. Only six of the 26 drawn one or two traded at single-figure prices and of those, only Brian Boru (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells) and Dubai Millennium (GB) (Seeking the Gold) went on to win at the highest level, having failed in this unique test. Breaking from the one post position this time is Godolphin’s True Story (GB) (Manduro {Ger}), who dented a reputation greatly enhanced by a win in the nine-furlong Listed Feilden S. at Newmarket Apr. 16 when only third at 8-13 in York’s G2 Dante S. last time May 15. While his eclipse in that all-important extended 10-furlong trial was seen as a disappointment in the immediate aftermath, it can be viewed in a different light now that the winner, The Grey Gatsby (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}), has gone on to capture Chantilly’s equivalent of this Classic. Saeed bin Suroor, who trained the aforementioned Lammtarra, has pinned his colors to the mast of Epsom specialist Kieren Fallon this time, and that accomplished rider knows these contours inside out, having enjoyed three wins in this and four in the Oaks. Now 49, the talented jockey with the checkered past is the same age as Sir Gordon Richards when he finally gained his first victory in this Classic in 1953, and Mick Kinane when he rode his final winner on Sea the Stars in 2009, and one year older than when Lester Piggott registered the last of his nine Derby wins in 1983. Buoyed by his 2000 Guineas success on Night of Thunder (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), Fallon is back in the zone after a brief slump. “The buzz I got winning on Night of Thunder, I’d never felt that before,” he told the Daily Mail. “Last year when the rides were drying up, I was getting out of bed at 11 or 12 and rolling up to the races. It is not a way to prepare yourself. I am looking after myself better now and feel better than I have ever done. I am getting that buzz again. It has been my kick-start to getting back on track again, and I love Epsom–it is a thinking course.” Of True Story, who may have “bounced” in the Dante after his seven-length demolition of the smart Irish colt Obliterator (Ire) (Oratorio {Ire}), with a subsequent listed winner a further six behind in fourth in the Fielden, he added, “If the ground is better, he will be a better horse. He has a better turn of foot than my previous Derby winners. North Light was a powerful galloper, Kris Kin was a lazy horse, a grinder, and Oath was the same, but this horse can really quicken.” In the next gate is last year’s G1 Racing Post Trophy hero Kingston Hill (GB) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}), the main market-mover in recent days, while in the stall four, which housed Sea the Stars and the 2003 winner Kris Kin, is another Godolphin representative in Pinzolo (GB) (Monsun {Ger}). He beat the subsequent impressive Listed Heron S. winner Master Carpenter (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) in Newmarket’s Listed Fairway S. over 10 furlongs last time May 17, and is joined by the fellow Charlie Appleby-trained Sudden Wonder (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}), who was third in the May 10 Listed Lingfield Derby Trial. 

Snow Sky Out; Doyle on Pinzolo… 
The winner of the Lingfield Derby Trial, Snow Sky (GB) (Nayef), was the race’s most notable withdrawal yesterday after the Sir Michael Stoute-trained colt failed to recover in time from an injured joint. Khalid Abdullah’s Racing Manager Teddy Grimthorpe issued a statement yesterday which read, “Sir Michael Stoute reported that the colt was not quite 100% this morning, so will not be declared for the Investec Derby. He could now go to the [June 20] 
G2 King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot.” That eventuality caused a twist in the 2014 Derby’s tale, with Juddmonte’s retained rider James Doyle being snapped up by Appleby for Pinzolo, with Mickael Barzalona replaced. “On days like Saturday, I will use whoever I feel is suitable for the horse and that I hope will get the best result for the team,” the trainer told the Racing Post. “[Doyle] is a jockey who is riding at the top of his game at the moment.” Of the two stable hopes, he added, “I’ve been delighted with their preparation. We’ve been on a bit of a weather-watch regarding Pinzolo, but they’ve had a bit of rain. He’s fit and well and there’s only one Derby, so we’ll take our chance.”