City of Troy looked in good order and, just like stablemate Auguste Rodin last year, bounced back from a poor showing in the 2000 Guineas to give Aidan O'Brien his tenth Derby winner, looking every bit the exciting prospect he’d seemed at two and reclaiming top spot as the leader of the classic generation which he'd lost to Guineas winner Notable Speech.
In the absence of three major trial winners – Dante winner Economics who hadn’t been supplemented, the sidelined Sandown winner Arabian Crown and the ill-fated Chester Vase winner Hidden Law – City of Troy was sent off the 3/1 favourite and in beating two other trial winners who were close up in the betting, Ambiente Friendly and Los Angeles, with the rest of the field well strung out behind them, the form overall looks well up to standard for the race.
Despite taking a strong hold under a much more patient ride than previously, City of Troy’s strong finish showed that he relished the step up from a mile having made an eye-catching move early in the straight, enjoying a clear run up the inner in a Derby with little in the way of trouble in running, even though outsider Voyage ran loose at the head of affairs after unseating leaving the stalls.
City of Troy gives the impression he has a top-class performance in him given the right circumstances though that might not necessarily be in Europe as he looks destined for a US campaign taking in the Travers Stakes and Breeders’ Cup Classic, the switch to dirt prompted by the fact that he’s by US triple crown winner Justify.
By contrast, the Oaks was more of a substandard classic, particularly with favourite Ylang Ylang only a disappointing sixth, but clear-cut winner Ezeliya, who was next in the betting, showed much improved form and is likely to prove a good winner, one able to hold her own against male rivals later in the campaign.
Ezeliya isn’t the biggest, but she impressed with the way she went through the race, handling the track well, and in keeping with her stout Aga Khan pedigree relished the step up to a mile and a half, while the soft ground and truly-run race put the emphasis on stamina.
She has done all her winning on ground softer than good, in fact, so the main question now will be how effective she’ll prove under quicker conditions. Leading over two furlongs out, Ezeliya kept on well to win readily by three lengths and with further progress to make is well up to winning more good races, with an autumn campaign built around the Prix Vermeille and Arc a possibility.
Beforehand, the line-up for the listed Surrey Stakes over seven furlongs didn’t look the strongest, but the two colts who pulled upwards of nine lengths clear of the rest showed marked improvement, with Archie Watson’s new recruit Evade coming out on top by a short head from Native American.
Trained by Andre Fabre at two and last seen beating only one home when pulling hard in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere on Arc day, Evade was inclined to race freely again, moving upsides by halfway but keeping on well in the final furlong when challenged although not looking entirely at ease on the track in the closing stages as the first two came close together.
Evade looks very much the type to make a better three-year-old, especially if he can become more tractable, and will be worth his place at a higher level with an entry in the Commonwealth Cup. A bigger field at Royal Ascot in either that race or the Jersey Stakes should help him settle better.
Among some smart performances in handicaps over the two days at Epsom was Beshtani’s British debut in a competitive contest over a mile. Formerly trained in France by Francis-Henri Graffard, he’d been bought for €340,000 to join Qatari trainer Hamad Al Jehani and went agonisingly close to becoming his first winner since moving to Newmarket.
Less exposed than his rivals as a four-year-old and with cheekpieces on for the first time, Beshtani showed improved form on his handicap debut, travelling well in touch and staying on to go down by a nose to the thriving Two Tempting, conceding the winner more than a stone and pulling clear of the remainder.
A Timeform rating of 116 would make Beshtani competitive at listed level at least, though he probably has unfinished business in top-end handicaps in the short term and holds an entry in the Royal Hunt Cup in a few weeks time.
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