2019 Epsom Derby

{{short description|240th running of the annual Derby horse race}}

{{Infobox horse race

|name = 2019 Epsom Derby

|horse race = Epsom Derby

|image_name =

|caption =

|location = Epsom Downs Racecourse

|date = 1 June 2019

|winning horse = Anthony Van Dyck

|starting price =

|winning jockey = Seamie Heffernan

|winning trainer = Aidan O'Brien

|winning owner =

|conditions =

|previous=2018

|next=2020

}}

{{Jockey colours header

| name = Epsom Derby 2019}}

{{Jockey colours row

| year = 1-2-3

| image1 = File:Owner Mrs John Magnier_2nd.svg

| alt1 = pink

| caption1 = Anthony Van Dyck

| image2 = File:Owner Mr Hamdan Al Maktoum.svg

| alt2 = Royal blue, white epaulets, striped cap

| caption2 = Madhmoon

| image3 = File:Owner Mr Derrick Smith.svg

| alt3 = Purple, white seams, striped sleeves, purple cap

| caption3 = Japan

}}

{| class="collapsible collapsed" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="clear:right; float:right; text-align:center; font-weight:bold;" width="280px"

! colspan="3" style="border:1px solid black; background-color: #77DD77;" | Also Ran

{{Jockey colours row

| year = 4-5-6

| image1 = File:Owner Michael Tabor_white_cap.svg

| alt1 = Royal blue, orange disc, striped sleeves, white cap

| caption1 = Broome

| image2 = File:Owner Mrs John Magnier.svg

| alt2 = Dark blue

| caption2 = Sir Dragonet

| image3 = File:Owner Flaxman Stables Ireland Ltd.svg

| alt3 = Dark blue, light blue cross belts, diabolo on sleeves, white cap

| caption3 = Circus Maximus

}}

{{Jockey colours row

| year = 7-8-9

| image1 = File:Owner HH Sheikh Zayed bin Mohammed Racing.svg

| alt1 = Royal blue, white chevron, royal blue cap, white star

| caption1 = Humanitarian

| image2 = File:Owner Mr Derrick Smith_white_cap.svg

| alt2 = Purple, white seams, striped sleeves, white cap

| caption2 = Norway

| image3 = File:Owner Godolphin.svg

| alt3 = Royal blue

| caption3 = Line Of Duty

}}

{{Jockey colours row

| year = 10-11-12

| image1 = File:Owner Clipper Logistics.svg

| alt1 = grey

| caption1 = Sovereign

| image2 = File:Owner Capel (CS) Ltd.svg

| alt2 = Purple, orange disc

| caption2 = Hiroshima

| image3 = File:Owner Abudiencia Co Ltd.svg

| alt3 = Royal blue, white hoop, striped sleeves, white cap, royal blue star

| caption3 = Bangkok

}}

{{Jockey colours row

| year = 13

| image1 = File:Owner Castle Down Racing.svg

| alt1 = Black, orange braces, striped sleeves, orange cap

| caption1 = Telecaster

| image2 = File: (at)-white.svg

| alt2 = 13 Ran

| caption2 = 13 Ran

| image3 = File: (at)-white.svg

| alt3 =

| caption3 = 2m 33.38s

}}

The 2019 Epsom Derby was the 240th annual running of the Derby horse race and took place at Epsom Downs Racecourse on 1 June 2019. The race was sponsored by Investec. The winner was the Coolmore Stud's bay colt Anthony Van Dyck, ridden by Seamie Heffernan and trained at Ballydoyle in Ireland by Aidan O'Brien.

Race synopsis

= Entries and race build-up =

The initial entry for the 2019 Epsom Derby, announced in December 2017, consisted of 338 yearlings whose owners paid £560 for each horse entered. The number of entries was an decrease of 110 on the initial entry for the 2018 race, and included 11 horses from the Godolphin organisation and 45 from the Coolmore Stud. Khalid Abdullah entered 18 horses and five-time winning owner Aga Khan IV had 22 entries. Queen Elizabeth II entered 5 horses for the race.{{cite web|last1=Parker|first1=Henry|title=Yearling entries for 2019 Derby revealed|work=Racing Post|url=https://www.racingpost.com/bloodstock/yearling-entries-for-2019-derby-revealed/312251|accessdate=27 December 2017}}{{cite web|title=Yearling entries for 2019 Investec Derby|url=http://www.thoroughbrednews.com.au/international/default.aspx?id=102202|website=Thoroughbred News|accessdate=27 December 2017}} A further 14 horses were added at the second entry stage in April 2019, at a cost to their owners of £9,000 for each horse entered. The second entries included three from Ireland and three from Godolphin, including eventual runners Line of Duty and Madhmoon.{{cite web |title=LINE OF DUTY AND MADHMOON HEADLINE 14 SECOND ENTRIES FOR 2019 INVESTEC DERBY |url=https://www.thejockeyclub.co.uk/epsom/media/news/2019/04/line-of-duty-and-madhmoon-headline-14-second-entries-2019-investec-derby/ |website=The Jockey Club - Epsom Downs |date=3 April 2019}} The Blue Riband Trial Stakes at Epsom on 24 April offered a free Derby entry to the winner; however the successful horse in 2019, Cape of Good Hope was already amongst the Derby entries.{{cite web |last1=Wood |first1=Greg |title=Cape Of Good Hope in happy return at Epsom after Arthur Kitt stumbles |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/apr/24/cape-of-good-hope-triumphant-return-epsom-boost-derby-chance-horse-racing |website=The Guardian |date=24 April 2019}} A final entry stage took place in May 2019 when Dante Stakes winner Telecaster and Chester Vase winner Sir Dragonet were added to the field at a cost of £85,000 each.{{cite web |last1=Cook |first1=Chris |title=Telecaster and Sir Dragonet supplemented for Derby |url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2019/may/27/talking-horses-dry-week-may-not-suit-derby-favourite-sir-dragonet-telecaster-horse-racing-tips |website=The Guardian |date=27 May 2019}}

The field for the 2019 Derby took on its final shape on Thursday 30 May when thirteen horses were declared to run with entries Cape of Good Hope and Surfman being withdrawn in favour of a run in the French equivalent race, the Prix du Jockey Club. The runners included seven trained by Aidan O'Brien. Sir Dragonet was favourite at the time of the declaration at odds of 11 to 4, with Broome and Telecaster just behind in the betting at 9 to 2 and 5 to 1 respectively.{{cite web |last1=Dietz |first1=Andrew |title=Derby final field: Aidan O'Brien to saddle more than half the runners |work=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/news/derby-previews/epsom-derby-runners-aidan-o-brien-to-saddle-more-than-half-the-field/383165 |date=30 May 2019}}

Race card

class="wikitable sortable"
No !Draw !Horse !Weight (st–lb) !Jockey !Trainer !Owner
1 \| 7 \| Anthony Van Dyck \| 9–0 \| Seamie Heffernan \| Aidan O'Brien (IRE) \| Tabor, Smith, Magnier
2 \| 12 \| Bangkok \| 9–0 \| Silvestre de Sousa \| Andrew Balding \| King Power Racing Co Ltd
3 \| 8 \| Broome \| 9–0 \| Donnacha O'Brien \| Aidan O'Brien (IRE) \| Tabor, Smith, Magnier
4 \| 5 \| Circus Maximus \| 9–0 \| Frankie Dettori \| Aidan O'Brien (IRE) \| Flaxman Stables, Tabor, Smith, Magnier
5 \| 3 \| Hiroshima \| 9–0 \| Brett Doyle \| John Ryan \| Graham Smith-Bernal
6 \| 9 \| Humanitarian \| 9–0 \| Robert Havlin \| John Gosden \| Sheikh Zayed bin Mohammed Racing
7 \| 11 \| Japan \| 9–0 \| Wayne Lordan \| Aidan O'Brien (IRE) \| Tabor, Smith, Magnier
8 \| 1 \| Line Of Duty \| 9–0 \| James Doyle \| Charlie Appleby \| Godolphin
9 \| 6 \| Madhmoon \| 9–0 \| Chris Hayes \| Kevin Prendergast (IRE) \| Hamdan Al Maktoum
10 \| 10 \| Norway \| 9–0 \| Jamie Spencer \| Aidan O'Brien (IRE) \| Tabor, Smith, Magnier
11 \| 13 \| Sir Dragonet \| 9–0 \| Ryan Moore \| Aidan O'Brien (IRE) \| Tabor, Smith, Magnier
12 \| 4 \| Sovereign \| 9–0 \| Padraig Beggy \| Aidan O'Brien (IRE) \| Tabor, Smith, Magnier
13 \| 2 \| Telecaster \| 9–0 \| Oisin Murphy \| Hughie Morrison \| Castle Down Racing

class="wikitable sortable"

!Draw

!Horse

!Weight (st–lb)

!Jockey

!Trainer

!Owner

| 7

| Anthony Van Dyck

| 9–0

| Seamie Heffernan

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| Tabor, Smith, Magnier

| 12

| Bangkok

| 9–0

| Silvestre de Sousa

| Andrew Balding

| King Power Racing Co Ltd

| 8

| Broome

| 9–0

| Donnacha O'Brien

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| Tabor, Smith, Magnier

| 5

| Circus Maximus

| 9–0

| Frankie Dettori

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| Flaxman Stables, Tabor, Smith, Magnier

| 3

| Hiroshima

| 9–0

| Brett Doyle

| John Ryan

| Graham Smith-Bernal

| 9

| Humanitarian

| 9–0

| Robert Havlin

| John Gosden

| Sheikh Zayed bin Mohammed Racing

| 11

| Japan

| 9–0

| Wayne Lordan

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| Tabor, Smith, Magnier

| 1

| Line Of Duty

| 9–0

| James Doyle

| Charlie Appleby

| Godolphin

| 6

| Madhmoon

| 9–0

| Chris Hayes

| Kevin Prendergast (IRE)

| Hamdan Al Maktoum

| 10

| Norway

| 9–0

| Jamie Spencer

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| Tabor, Smith, Magnier

| 13

| Sir Dragonet

| 9–0

| Ryan Moore

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| Tabor, Smith, Magnier

| 4

| Sovereign

| 9–0

| Padraig Beggy

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| Tabor, Smith, Magnier

| 2

| Telecaster

| 9–0

| Oisin Murphy

| Hughie Morrison

| Castle Down Racing

Trainers are based in Great Britain unless indicated.

The race

The race started at 4:33 pm in bright sunshine on ground officially described as good to firm. Sovereign set the early pace from Norway with Telecaster and Circus Maximus close behind ahead of Line of Duty and Sir Dragonet. The order remained largely unchanged until the horses entered the straight, where Sovereign gave way to Norway and the chasing group fanned out to obtain racing room.{{cite web|url= https://www.bbc.com/sport/horse-racing/48485595|title =Epsom Derby: Anthony Van Dyck wins showcase race for Aidan O'Brien|date=1 June 2019|work=BBC Sport|accessdate=4 June 2019}}

Approaching the last quarter mile Sir Dragonet hit the front closely pressed by Madhmoon to his left, while Broome began to make rapid headway on the outside. Entering the final furlong Sir Dragonet held a narrow lead over Madhmoon with Broome in third but new challengers emerged in the form of Anthony Van Dyck, who had been switched to the inside, and Japan who launched a run on the wide outside. In a "blanket finish" Anthony Van Dyck took the lead in the last 100 yards and prevailed by half a length with Madhmoon getting the better of Japan, Broome and Sir Dragonet in a four-way photo for second.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2019/jun/01/derby-2019-race-report-anthony-van-dyck-aidan-o-brien |title =Anthony Van Dyck wins the Derby to earn O'Brien place in record books|date=1 June 2019|work=Guardian|accessdate=4 June 2019}}

Circus Maximus was four and a half lengths back in sixth, one place ahead of the first British-trained finisher Humanitarian.{{cite web|url=https://www.racingpost.com/results/17/epsom/2019-06-01/690380|title=Epsom Derby result |publisher=Racing Post|date=1 June 2019}}

Full result

class="wikitable sortable"

style="background:#7d7; text-align:center;"

| style="width:35px;"|

| style="width:45px;"| Dist *

| style="width:160px;"| Horse

| style="width:160px;"| Jockey

| style="width:200px;"| Trainer

| style="width:80px;"| SP

| Anthony Van Dyck

| Seamie Heffernan

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| 13/2

| ½

| Madhmoon

| Chris Hayes

| Kevin Prendergast (IRE)

| 10/1

| nse

| Japan

| Wayne Lordan

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| 20/1

| shd

| Broome

| Donnacha O'Brien

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| 4/1

| shd

| Sir Dragonet

| Ryan Moore

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| 11/4 fav

| 4½

| Circus Maximus

| Frankie Dettori

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| 10/1

| 1¾

| Humanitarian

| Robert Havlin

| John Gosden

| 33/1

| shd

| Norway

| Jamie Spencer

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| 33/1

| 1

| Line of Duty

| James Doyle

| Charlie Appleby

| 25/1

| 1¼

| Sovereign

| Padraig Beggy

| Aidan O'Brien (IRE)

| 50/1

| 2¼

| Hiroshima

| Brett Doyle

| John Ryan

| 100/1

| 1¼

| Bangkok

| Silvestre de Sousa

| Andrew Balding

| 9/1

| 6

| Telecaster

| Oisin Murphy

| Hughie Morrison

| 5/1

Winner's time: 2 min 33.38 sec

* The distances between the horses are shown in lengths or shorter; nse = nose; shd = short head.
† Trainers are based in Great Britain unless indicated.

Records

Anthony Van Dyck gave Aidan O'Brien a seventh winner of the race after Galileo, High Chaparral, Camelot, Ruler of the World, Australia and Wings of Eagles, equaling the records of Robert Robson, John Porter and Fred Darling. The Coolmore partners Susan Magnier and Michael Tabor were winning the race for a record eighth time. The winning time of 2:33.38 was the seventh fastest time for the Derby at Epsom. The first six finishers were trained in Ireland, bettering the result of 2009 when the first five were Irish-trained. Seamie Heffernan won the race at his twelfth attempt, after finishing second in 2009 and 2010 and third in 2016 and 2017. Anthony Van Dyck's foaling date of 19 May was the latest of any Derby winner since Erhaab (24 May) in 1994.

Form analysis

= Two-year-old races =

Notable runs by the future Derby participants as two-year-olds in 2018

Anthony Van Dyck – 1st in Tyros Stakes, 1st in Futurity Stakes, 2nd in Vincent O'Brien National Stakes, 3rd in Dewhurst Stakes, 9th in Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf{{cite web |title=Anthony Van Dyck - Race Record & Form |publisher=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/2005579/anthony-van-dyck/form |accessdate=31 May 2019}}
Broome - 2nd in Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère, 2nd in Juvenile Stakes, 6th in Acomb Stakes{{cite web |title=Broome - Race Record & Form |publisher=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/1749010/broome/form |accessdate=31 May 2019}}
Circus Maximus - 3rd in Autumn Stakes, 4th in Vertem Futurity Trophy{{cite web |title=Circus Maximus - Race Record & Form |publisher=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/1748791/circus-maximus/form |accessdate=31 May 2019}}
Japan - 1st in Beresford Stakes{{cite web |title=Japan - Race Record & Form |publisher=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/1748997/japan/form |accessdate=31 May 2019}}
Line of Duty - 1st in Prix de Condé, 1st in Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf{{cite web |title=Line of Duty - Race Record & Form |publisher=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/1896357/line-of-duty/form |accessdate=31 May 2019}}
Madhmoon - 1st in Juvenile Stakes{{cite web |title=Madhmoon - Race Record & Form |publisher=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/2084911/madhmoon/form |accessdate=31 May 2019}}
Norway - 1st in Zetland Stakes, 4th in Critérium de Saint-Cloud{{cite web |title=Norway - Race Record & Form |publisher=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/1748863/norway/form |accessdate=31 May 2019}}
Sovereign - 3rd in Eyrefield Stakes, 4th in Beresford Stakes{{cite web |title=Sovereign - Race Record & Form |publisher=Racing Post |url=https://www.racingpost.com/profile/horse/1748868/sovereign/form |accessdate=31 May 2019}}