Great Derby (G1) winners all produce a moment during their victory run which stays frozen in time. We have been left holding a tantalizing memory of Richard Kingscote and Desert Crown sailing past Stone Age and into the history books for nigh on a year, waiting for further hard evidence of what our eyes told us back then was a sublime winning effort from an unbeaten talent with the racing world at his feet.
It is not just a case of absence making the heart grow fonder; in the moment it was real too, as the pair surged clear at the two-furlong pole and you can take your pick between ITV’s Richard Hoiles’ “sauntering up to them on the outside” or Racing TV’s Simon Holt and “oh and it’s all over, surely” as a preferred punctuation mark.
The reappearance of the previous year’s Epsom hero 355 days on from his last public sighting is no small matter. The son of Nathaniel is the 10th Derby winner this century to return at 4 but you have to go back to another Stoute masterpiece, Workforce in 2010, for a colt who surpassed Desert Crown’s winning mark of 123 and then raced on the following season.
Having picked up a minor niggle the day before his last serious piece of work heading into the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1) last July, Sir Michael Stoute and owner Saeed Suhail exhibited great patience in not rushing Desert Crown back for a shy at one of the big autumn targets.
Nor has there been any unseemly rush to the track this spring, with Stoute identifying early on his favorite stepping stone of the Brigadier Gerard Stakes (G3) as the logical place to launch the next phase of Desert Crown’s career.
Bruce Raymond, racing manager to Saeed Suhail, said: “The horse doesn’t take a lot of getting ready and even though earlier on the grass wasn’t open because it was too wet around Newmarket, his last two bits of work, Michael has been very happy. He won’t lack fitness.
“I don’t think a mile and a quarter is a problem for him at all and we know he stays a mile and a half. He’s probably a horse you could switch about and I don’t think it would be a problem. He’s also versatile in terms of tactics and that adds to how good he can be.”
Raymond added: “We’ve got Solid Stone in there to make sure there is a strong gallop. He’s his lead horse at home and Michael purposely didn’t run him at Chester because he wanted to keep him for this.”
A returning group 1 winner would ordinarily be saddled with a penalty to overcome in this race but the ‘statute of limitations’ for such considerations is August 31, a date which means another horse on the comeback trail, last season’s Coronation Cup (G1) winner Hukum , also escapes an extra impost.
That success 24 hours before Desert Crown won the Derby enabled Hukum to finally be known for something other than being Baaeed ‘s older brother, but Shadwell and trainer Owen Burrows were dealt a cruel blow when he returned home from Epsom lame and had three screws inserted in a hind leg.
Hukum wins the 2022 Coronation Cup at Epsom
Claymore exhibited smart form at three, notably when chasing home Native Trail in the Craven Stakes (G3) and then winning the Hampton Court Stakes (G3) over this mile-and-a-quarter trip at Royal Ascot.
Yet another of those returning off a 300-plus-day layoff, Jane Chapple-Hyam’s 4-year-old has 12lb to find on official ratings with Desert Crown but, after only five lifetime starts, he is certainly open to further improvement.
That is still one more visit to the racetrack than Cash has managed but, having suffered a setback while being prepared for last season’s Prix du Jockey Club (G1), David Simcock did at least manage to get the son of Shamardal back for a spin on the all-weather last November.
Cash certainly built on that when running subsequent Lockinge Stakes (G1) runner-up Chindit close at Ascot over a mile last month, while a return to 10 furlongs looks a positive as well.
Chichester shares a 109 rating with Cash but nothing like the same progressive profile. His All-Weather finals day conqueror Berkshire Shadow was third in the Lockinge and there is an argument to be made that he should not be five times the price of Cash, although his four best performances on Racing Post Ratings have all been on an artificial surface.
There are hopefully bigger tasks ahead for several of the principals but the horse with surely the most exciting season ahead of him is also the one whose past performances are seared into the memory. This is only a starting point for Desert Crown, who has the chance to build a substantial legacy off the back of that dazzling Derby display. It’s great to have him back.
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