IT was not the result the majority of the British nation wanted to see as the Queen’s Carlton House simply failed to match the blistering speed of French interloper Pour Moi in the Investec Derby.
Thousands flocked to Epsom Downs – including the majority of the royal family – in support of the colt, who went off the 5-2 favourite to give Her Majesty a first ever victory in the Classic.
He produced a valiant effort under difficult circumstances to finish third, just a length behind a raider from the esteemed Chantilly stable of Andre Fabre.
Pour Moi passed almost every horse in the field after Tattenham Corner under jockey Mickael Barzalona, 19, who was either remarkably or recklessly confident as he stood up in his irons in jubilation before his mount had even crossed the line.
Disciplinarian Fabre is likely to have a few quiet words in time for Barzalona, who only had a head in hand over Treasure Beach on the official records.
Fabre had taken Pour Moi (4-1) to Epsom the previous week to give him a racecourse gallop at a press morning – where he declared he expected to be unpopular if he beat Carlton House but nonetheless felt Pour Moi was his best chance of winning the Derby after nine previous misses.
Fabre made sure he said the right things later, but it was hard not to feel sorry for Carlton House and his regal connections as he was forced wide around the home bend when impeded by Ocean War and, indirectly, Marhaba Malyoon.
Sir Michael Stoute’s runner had been the source of a worrying injury scare earlier in the week and was found to have lost a front shoe in the race.
Joseph O’Brien and Memphis Tennessee held a clear lead until the final furlong before his stable companion at Aidan O’Brien’s, Treasure Beach, took command but in an instant his own bid for Derby immortality had fallen by the wayside as he was felled with just yards to run.
“Finally!” said Fabre.
“I think the bad luck we’ve had here before has been more because the horses were not good enough but I thought I had a proper horse for Epsom. This is one of the races everyone wants to win and now it’s over.
“What surprised me is he had two accelerations – one to catch up and then he hit another gear. This was the sign of a champion.
“It was a pleasure that Mickael is a home-made jockey and I know his family. I had complete confidence in him.”
Asked about beating the Queen, Fabre added: “It is a race between horses, not between people, otherwise I would have finished far behind Her Majesty.’’ Fabre went on: “I will talk to the owners but at the moment the plan is to give him a summer break and then go for the Arc. We will miss the King George as I consider it too serious a race for a young horse.”
Barzalona has been groomed for stardom by Fabre and, more recently, as effectively the second-choice jockey for Godolphin behind Frankie Dettori.
His exuberance in the saddle was not matched in interviews as he cannot speak English, but he revealed through translation: “I always felt confident during the race, and even though I was at the back the other good horses were just in front of me.
“For a while I thought I would be fourth or fifth, but he just went on and on. It is fantastic and I don’t realise yet what has happened.’’ No mercy was shown to the Queen in the heat of battle by Pour Moi’s owners, the Coolmore triumvirate of Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith and John Magnier even after the recent royal visit to their Irish stud, but they also tipped their top hats afterwards.
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