The man in form Charlie Appleby training his first Derby winner with Masar, ridden by William Buick, gaining his first Derby winner, and a first-time winner in the Godolphin blue silks, giving us the prospect of battle re-joined at the highest level between the Darley and Coolmore power-houses – in a Racing Hub twitter vote, in which nearly 300 followers answered the question who would win if Masar, Dee Ex Bee and Saxon Warrior met in the Irish Derby, 49% said Saxon Warrior, 23% Masar, and 22% Dee Ex Bee (7% said none of the above)
Maiden Forever Together winning the Investec Oaks by four-and-a-half lengths for a seventh victory in the fillies’ Classic for Aiden O’Brien and a second Classic this year for 19-year-old son Donnacha
ITV Racing getting a peak of 1.8m views for its Derby Day coverage, the highest audience since C4 attracted 2m viewers five years ago, before ending with 1.4m in 2016
An aggregate crowd of 65,000, plus thousands more on the Downs, enjoying two days of great weather and without any major disturbances being reported
Adam Kirby shunning the Epsom stand rails in Saturday’s opener to win with Connect on his lonesome
The ‘Queen’ attending the Derby
Cracksman overcoming banging his head in the stalls, reportedly leaving him briefly dazed, being driven home by Frankie Dettori to win the Coronation Stakes
Peter Bowen taking the ten-hour journey from south Wales to Perth to land the Scottish track’s biggest prize, the £40,000 City of Perth Gold Cup, with Henllan Harri, ridden by son Sean Bowen…
… and Christian Williams also travelling from Wales in a 520-mile round trip to Fakenham where he won with Fifty Shades at the Norfolk course ridden by James Bowen
Cartmel clerk of the course Anthea Morshead stopping a handicap hurdle in mid-race when jockey Derek Fox and horse The Compeller seemed to have suffered serious injuries in a fall and a vet reported there wasn’t enough room for the horses to pass on the next circuit – fortunately the injuries were not as severe as first thought but the decision to halt the race was the right one to take
Chelmsford getting the go-ahead to race on a new turf track, albeit that racing is unlikely before 2020 a the earliest
STEWARDS ROOM
…and what hasn’t been so good
Racing losing the riding services of Andrew Thornton who retires on Wednesday when he takes his last ride at Uttoxeter
Harry Cobden being side-lined for most of the summer after a fall last week at Market Rasen resulted in a small neck fracture
Doncaster winning SPs on Saturday included 16/1 (twice), 18/1, 33/1 and 40/1
Kilbeggan having to abandon Sunday’s meeting at short notice after a burst water main nearby cut off the track’s water supply
Further fighting at a racecourse, this time at Hexham, although there has been no reported injuries or police involvement, and drugs discovered on racegoers at Kelso and Musselburgh
Trainers Warren Greatrex and Alan King criticising cramped owners’ bar facilities which were situated behind the stand, with regular facilities given over to corporate hospitality guests
Six cases of equine herpes art two Irish thoroughbred farms being confirmed, although the virus has been contained within the two establishments, one in Leinster and one in Munster
