Just 55 days after struggling to win an ordinary maiden on his debut, Ruler Of The World graduated to the most exclusive roll of honour in racing when giving trainer Aidan O’Brien a fourth success in Saturday’s Investec Epsom Derby.
That the immediate post-race focus was as much on the last as the first was understandable since the previously unbeaten favourite, Dawn Approach, ran an extraordinary race, fighting jockey Kevin Manning for almost the entire first half of the Classic, ultimately winning that struggle and going to the lead before inevitably fading in the straight.
Instead it was another unbeaten Irish chestnut who powered home under Ryan Moore to beat Libertarian and David Wachman's Galileo Rock and it is testament to O'Brien's and Coolmore Stud's current stranglehold on racing's most coveted prize that the improbability of Ruler Of The World's success hardly ended up remarked upon.
That maiden success at the Curragh was by less than a length over a horse who has been well beaten twice since. The third that day, St Jean, also won on Saturday, in a €10,000 race at Tramore!
As a half-brother to the top-class Duke Of Marmalade, the likelihood was always that Ruler Of The World would improve with time but the rate of that improvement, through the Chester Vase, and on to Epsom has been staggering enough to make anyone wonder where it might end. "This horse was impressive at Chester and has won like a very good horse," said O'Brien who indicated a willingness to head next for the Irish Derby later this month.
The Curragh Classic is a big race O'Brien and Coolmore dominate like no other. But Saturday's Derby win was a third in a row, and a fifth in all, for the John Magnier-led syndicate, and a 10th in total for the legendary Ballydoyle stables in Tipperary.
Future unclear
The future is much less clear for Dawn Approach. Pre-race speculation about his stamina presumed on what had previously been a cast-iron temperament. Saturday's display was useless in terms of establishing whether or not he stays but Jim Bolger indicated he won't be tried at a mile and a half again.
What Saturday did prove again is Epsom’s credentials in terms of providing the ultimate test of the Classic thoroughbred. Dawn Approach was so ‘rank’ anyway, it could hardly be blamed on the Ballydoyle strategy of setting a funereal pace at the front through Battle Of Marengo. But the same thing happened in 2009 with another brilliant Guineas winner and Sea The Stars was unperturbed. Dawn Approach failed a similar mental test.
Jim Bolger and Kevin Manning’s weekend didn’t improve at Chantilly yesterday when Loch Garman failed to contend, along with Frankie Dettori’s mount, First Cornerstone, in the Prix Du Jockey Club, won impressively by the favourite, Intello.
He is unlikely to travel to the Curragh later in the month for the Irish Derby, but Libertarian is likely to be supplemented for another crack at Ruler Of The World. Instead Intello will probably wait for the Arc in October. But fundamental to all of it is that the French star, like Ruler Of The World, is by Coolmore’s super-stallion Galileo.
