Midterm Examination

Bred out of Juddmonte's very top-drawer and unbeaten so far, Midterm (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) has understandably been made the ante-post favourite for the upcoming G1 Epsom Derby, and he looks to justify that position in Thursday's G2 Betfred Dante S. at York. Brought along with typically tender guidance so far by his master trainer Sir Michael Stoute, who is just one win off joining Sir Henry Cecil on the record of seven in this prestigious contest, the son of the illustrious Midday (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) kept the dream alive in the Apr. 22 G3 Sandown Classic Trial. “He came out of that race very well, but he is a very lazy horse at home,” the Freemason Lodge handler said. “As a 2-year-old, he was very workmanlike in his preparation for [his winning debut at] Newbury, and this spring he hasn't done an impressive bit of work at home–that's him. At least we know he does it on the racecourse–he's gone and answered the question at Sandown, but we don't know whether that form is good enough. We've got to come through another trial and it's early days. We'd welcome a sixth Derby, but we're a long way from that at the moment. Of course there's excitement there, but we're not getting carried away.”

Khalid Abdullah's racing manager Teddy Grimthorpe added, “He has always been a hard horse to gauge, because he does very little in his homework but wakes up at the racecourse. He will need to come on and improve. I've always considered it the definitive Derby trial. You only have to look back to last year to see how true that is with Golden Horn and Jack Hobbs. But you can go back a lot further–there is a list of illustrious winners of the Dante. He has done well with a bit of cut in the ground. He has got a very good, smooth action, so I would think he would suit fast going as well.”

Having been readily upstaged by Stormy Antarctic (GB) (Stormy Atlantic) when third in the G3 Craven S. at Newmarket Apr. 14, Highclere Thoroughbred Racing's Foundation (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) was removed from the 2000 Guineas picture, but the feeling was that John Gosden had always seen him as more of a prospect for longer distances than a mile. Last year's G2 Royal Lodge S. winner and desperately unlucky G1 Racing Post Trophy third is joined by Lady Bamford's homebred Wings of Desire (GB) (Pivotal {GB}), who is from the other end of the experience spectrum, having won a 12-furlong maiden on the Tapeta at Wolverhampton Apr. 23. Harry Herbert, representing Foundation's owners, said, “Foundation is in good form and worked very well on Saturday. I've spoken to John and he's very pleased with the horse. I wouldn't read too much into the Craven scenario. He was beaten by a better horse over the trip and on that particular ground. We need to be going a mile and a quarter and that's going to be the most interesting thing–how much improvement that brings out in the horse going over more of a trip. In the Craven, Frankie was very easy on the horse and John always said the Craven was not the be-all and end-all. He wanted to take the freshness out of the horse before the Dante, bring him on fitness-level wise.”

Surprisingly, Dettori has deserted Foundation for Wings of Desire, and that colt's owner's racing manager, Hugo Lascelles, is in the dark at present. “It is clearly a very tough ask, but John just wants to see where we are with the horse. He's still a bit of an immature individual and this race will tell us a lot more.” Aidan O'Brien is looking for a fourth renewal and saddles Fitri Hay's Royal Lodge runner-up and Racing Post Trophy fifth Deauville (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and the Apr. 10 Listed Leopardstown 2000 Guineas Trial scorer Black Sea (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).

One of the most interesting of the unexposed colts in the line-up is the China Horse Club's Choreographer (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}), who looked to have a bright future when scoring on debut over this trip at Windsor Apr. 25.