In the end, it was all so gloriously simple. Unfortunately for the Jockey Club, finding a solution to the sport’s Derby dilemma may not be so straightforward.
The good news is the thing around which the Derby festival must be built, namely the Derby itself, appears to be in fine order. The number of people coming to see the two Epsom Classics and the Coronation Cup has declined to a level that merits real concern but there is nothing obviously wrong with the races themselves. That should at least provide hope for the future.
It was particularly heartening to see the Derby contested by such a large field, and while some might lament the predictability of a third consecutive success for Ballydoyle and Coolmore, it is beneficial to the race, the sport and the thoroughbred breed that the bloodstock industry’s most powerful and influential operation continues to place the Derby on the highest of pedestals.
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