PRIDE OF ARRAS tamed The Lion In Winter in the Dante and breathed fresh life into the Derby.
Ralph Beckett’s colt was the least experienced runner in the field but burst through a gap and stayed on stylishly to spring an 18-1 upset in the most important of the Epsom trials.
Damysus ran on late to take second while The Lion In Winter, backed off the boards late into 8-11, could only finish sixth as he failed to settle early doors under Ryan Moore.
It’s ironic that Aidan O’Brien has swept all before him in the Classic trials this spring but his top Derby candidate has run the worst race of the lot.
With Ballydoyle and Godolphin dominating the antepost betting for the great race, it was no bad thing to have a new face enter the fray and Pride Of Arras has definitely done that.
He was slashed into 4-1 from 50s with Derby sponsors Betfred, with O’Brien’s Delacroix (2-1) now replacing his stablemate at the head of the betting.
The closest Beckett has come to winning the Derby was in 2022 when Westover finished an unlucky third behind Desert Crown, and he reckons this horse has just as much potential.
Beckett said: “I think that was everything I hoped for and more.
“He’s a very good work horse and I was confident this was the right place to bring him, I was just not confident about the result.
“A few of mine have been needing the run. I’ve been tough on him to get him here because he just lacked experience and he’ll come forward from today.
“He’s a very well-balanced horse and I’d be reasonably confident he could go around Epsom and we’re looking forward to it. I’d have every confidence the trip won’t be an issue.
“He’s worthy of his place in the Derby but it’s difficult to say he’s like my other Classic horses.
“He’s not a Westover, he’s not Bluestocking. He has a good back pedigree but not the profile of those, if you like.
“But in saying that, he has more speed than Westover, he’s a better workhorse than he was.
“If he handles Epsom, which I think he will, and he handles the jamboree, which based on today I think he will, we’ve every right to think we’re going there to be competitive.
“What happens after that, who knows?”;;
Despite his defeat, O’Brien was surprisingly chipper about The Lion In Winter’s Epsom prospects.
When Moore asked him to quicken he looked pretty one-paced, but they reckon he’ll improve a ton for the race and he is still likely to head for the Derby on June 7.
O’Brien said: “Ryan was happy with him so that’s a positive, and I think he will take a lot of improvement for it.
“He was fresh in the stalls, he over raced and he probably got tired but then he stayed on to the line, which is good.
“There are 23 days to Epsom and he is going to improve. We’ll see how he comes out of it.”;;
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