3 minute read

Love is all you need if your name is Aidan O'Brien and you want to win your 8th Epsom Oaks.

Love put on a stunning display of stamina and speed under Ryan Moore to win the Classic by 9 lengths, and in record time in what was a brilliant day for her sire Galileo.  Her stablemate Ennistymon is also a daughter of Galileo who chased hard but not fast enough under Seamie Heffernan.  Frankly Darling was sweating up before the start and while Frankie Dettori did his best to keep her calm she didn't start well and the rest is history – 3rd.  She may become  calmer with age so don't write her off just yet.

Love has now won the first two lengths of the fillies triple crown and we feel that her connections would probably wish to aim for that.

The romantic mood continued in the Princess Elizabeth when Summer Romance put in a gutsy performance under William Buick to win from Cloak of Spirits by ¾ length, with Rose of Kildare taking another third after finishing in that spot in the German 1000 Guineas.

And the Derby itself.  It often throws up surprises but this was just extraordinary.  How could you predict the race would be won by a 25/1 shot ridden by a jockey having his first ride in the Derby and the horse only breaking his maiden 7 days previously?  Well you could – possibly - if you factored in that the horse was by Galileo and trained by Aidan O'Brien!  The horse was Serpentine, the jockey Emmet McNamara and the trainer the said O'Brien who got a record-breaking 8th Derby!

The second home must have been an emotional result for Tom Marquand who had been taken off the pre-race favourite English King and then given the ride on Khalifa Sat by Andrew Balding, who trained the favourite Kameko.  They were on 50/1.

Third was another O'Brien horse – Amhran Na Bhfiann – and another Galileo – this time ridden by William Buick, who had started at 66/1.

Kameko was fourth and probably did not get the trip, followed by English King and Russian Emperor.

The time, while a record, was slower than the Oaks.