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Tommo – ‘Are you well? I thought you were!’, and so much more

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Derek Thompson will commentate on a race for the final time on Tuesday evening at Wolverhampton. Here, we look at ‘Tommo’s’ take on his near 60-year career in broadcasting.

On where it all started

Derek Thompson first commentated as a 15-year-old
Derek Thompson first commentated as a 15-year-old (George Selwyn/PA)

My dad, the late Stanley Thompson, he started commentaries in point-to-points and I think it was 1965 and halfway round at Great Ayton he turned the microphone off and said ‘I can’t see them anymore you take over’. I picked up the microphone and switched on and said ‘they go towards the next on the far side’ and that’s how it started.

On becoming involved in the Shergar mystery as a negotiator with the kidnappers

Shergar won the Derby in 1981
Shergar won the Derby in 1981 (PA)

I never want to go through that again. That was absolutely horrible. It is something I can still remember vividly to this day and it was just awful. Going to Belfast in the height of The Troubles, going into the (Europa) hotel. As soon as I walked in it was ‘would Mr Thompson pick up the hotel phone?’. And that’s where a voice said ‘I’m watching you from the other side of street’ and you think ‘what?’ and do this and do that. We tried to get the horse back, it was just absolutely an incredible time and I talked to the supposed kidnappers of Shergar. I think there were about eight or nine phone calls and it was the last one at half past midnight where I kept him talking for a minute and a half. If I kept him talking for that long they could trace the call, and I said to the policeman who was sitting next to me with the earphones on ‘did we trace the call’ and he said ‘no, I’m sorry the man who traces the call went off shift at midnight’. We never found the horse.

On his now famous line of ‘Are you well? I thought you were!’

I was doing a promotion for a hotel in Bawtry quite a few years ago and I’d done a piece outside the hotel – ‘this is the Crown Hotel in Bawtry, let’s see what it’s like and go inside, blah blah blah’ – and walked inside and there were the girls at the bar, they were the people who worked there. They were looking like they were having a drink at the bar and I walked up and I don’t know why I said it ‘hello, are you well? I thought you were!’. Why on earth would anyone say that? It just went from there, Greg James from Radio One rang me one day and said ‘Tommo, it’s Greg James here’. ‘Greg James? You’re Radio One’. He said ‘yeah, Tommo I want to ask, are you well? I thought you were’ on the radio and it just went on from there.

On the equally famous ‘It’s a man actually, Derek’

When I handed over from the studio to Bob (Robert Cooper, on At The Races) at Hereford, I just looked at my screen in front of me and I just saw the blonde hair, so I said ‘oh, you’re with a beautiful woman’, he said ‘it’s a man actually, Derek’ and that got to Glastonbury. On the stage in the background were signs in bright letters ‘it’s a man actually, Derek’ – I mean what is that? Greg James was there and he sent me a photo and said ‘you’re on the stage at Glastonbury’. Crazy.

On owning horses with his wife, Caroline

Cheerleader won at Redcar and Catterick. It was my wife Caroline who bought the horse because she wanted to ride and so we put the horse out in the field. She (Cheerleader) just flourished and it was Tina (Jackson), my brother’s partner who trains near Whitby, who said ‘I think you could race her again, I think she could win’. We weren’t going to because we were just going to retire her. Caroline said ‘come on, shall we do it’ and the horse has won twice. We are so lucky and we’ve got a few other shares with My Future Champion who are great syndicate guys, so it’s lovely to be involved that way as well. We’re very lucky, but it’s all Caroline’s fault! She was the one who said we’re going to have this horse. Another time I tried to talk her out of it but she was absolutely spot on, so well done Caroline.”

On his greatest memory from racing

Dubai Millennium winning the Prince of Wales’s Stakes
Dubai Millennium winning the Prince of Wales’s Stakes (Sean Dempsey/PA)

Dubai Millennium. I started commentaries in Dubai with Sheikh Mohammed. Henry Cecil had got me over there and my greatest memory was Dubai Millennium winning the 2000 Dubai World Cup by 10 lengths. I still miss him to this day (Dubai Millennium died aged five due to grass sickness) and whenever I go to Newmarket, I always try to go to where he’s buried and I always pay my respects to him.

On working with John McCririck and Alastair Down on Channel 4

Derek Thompson (second right) and John McCririck (right) with their ITV colleagues
Derek Thompson (second right) and John McCririck (right) with their ITV colleagues (PA)

They were the ultimate professionals. People didn’t see the work they did behind the scenes, but I did. It was just a joy to watch. I always remember that Big Mac used to wear two watches and I said ‘Mac, I’ve got to ask you after all these years, why do you wear two watches, one on each wrist?’. He looked at me and said ‘well, in case one stops’. I suppose it’s right because you’ve got to know exactly what time it is. He was a great journalist and a great broadcaster. He brought something to The Morning Line which you couldn’t buy. It was just incredible. I thought he was superb. Alastair Down was a great journalist. He had a way of putting things into words that nobody else could do. Every time I used to read him, I marvelled at the way he expressed himself and it was so good for racing. It attracted a lot of people into racing who were watching it on TV or reading it in print.

Derek Thompson bringing the curtain down on his commentary career

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Derek Thompson felt the time was right to end his commentary career, as he prepares to pick up the microphone for the final time at Wolverhampton on Tuesday night.

Thompson is one of the most recognisable figures in the racing industry having spent time commentating on-course and for BBC radio, while also presenting for ITV, Channel 4, At The Races and Sky Sports Racing during a nearly 60-year broadcasting career.

The 74-year-old was even part of a three-strong party alongside Lord Oaksey and The Sun’s Peter Campling that attempted to negotiate the release of Shergar after the 1981 Derby winner was kidnapped.

He also enjoyed time in the spotlight when what became his famous catchphrase, “Are you well? I thought you were”, appeared on Radio One courtesy of Greg James before going viral, as did an At The Races clip of him when he mistook a man for a woman during an exchange with Robert Cooper.

But now ‘Tommo’ is taking a step back and Dunstall Park will be the last time he calls them home at a race meeting.

Thompson told the PA news agency: “I’ll be brutally honest, it’s not going to be easy because I still love it to this day and I’m so proud that I’m one of about 20 people that do the race calling in the UK.

Derek Thompson is stepping down from commentating
Derek Thompson is stepping down from commentating (Mike Egerton/PA)

“I’ve been doing it for so many years that it’s time to move on. It’s not getting any easier, but I still love it. I’ve been very lucky, I’m paid to go to the races. Other people have to pay to get in. I’ve got the best seat in the house.

“I’m absolutely stunned by the amount of people that have come up – and that’s not just older people like me, but younger people as well – and said can I have a selfie, can I have your autograph. It’s just lovely. The messages I’ve been getting on social media, thank you so much, it’s lovely, it almost brought a tear to my eye. It’s very moving and it makes me feel very proud.

While Thompson will be putting down his binoculars, he certainly does not plan to be a stranger to the racecourse and hopes to take his affable style around the country.

Frankel's debut win at Newmarket is one of Thompson's fondest memories
Frankel’s debut win at Newmarket is one of Thompson’s fondest memories (Nigel French/PA)

Thompson said: “I’ll still be presenting at the racetracks around the country and hoping to organise a little tour called, ‘Are you well? I thought you were’, or ‘It’s a man actually, Derek’, so we’re hoping to continue the fun side of racing because I’m a great believer in enjoying racing.

“The memories, and there’s some great stories, many of which we can’t tell, but the ones we can I’d love to, we’re hoping to start a podcast. I will still be going (racing) because I enjoy working. I’ve been very lucky over the years, working with people like John Francome, Brough Scott.”

Thompson also famously once raced against the then future King in a charity event and remembers the race fondly.

He said: “I beat him, Prince Charles as he was then. I rode a horse for Nicky Henderson called Classified and I beat him at Plumpton.

King Charles III once raced against Thompson
King Charles III once raced against Thompson (Andrew Matthews/PA)

“There were about 12 runners, it was a two-mile Flat race and it was incredible.

“We occasionally have a chat at the races, Royal Ascot and stuff and we get together sometimes.

“I always say, ‘Sir, I’m sorry I beat you all those years ago and he says ‘don’t worry, I forgave you’, but the (late) Queen goes, ‘but I haven’t, Tommo’. It was incredible.”

Reflecting on his illustrious career behind the microphone, one of Thompson’s favourite memories was calling Frankel’s racecourse debut at Newmarket when Sir Henry Cecil’s charge launched the beginning of an unbeaten 14-race career.

And Thompson has fond memories of the late, great Cecil and the empathy he showed when he was dealing with bowel cancer in 2012.

Sir Henry Cecil with Tom Queally and Frankel
Sir Henry Cecil with Tom Queally and Frankel (PA)

He said: “I did the first commentary on Frankel when he won at Newmarket – what a horse.

“I used to go and sit with Henry Cecil on the gallops. I remember I had cancer and I was coming out of hospital and I was very weak and I used to go on the gallops at Newmarket.

“I remember him saying, ‘come on, sit down next to me’, and we watched the horses because I could hardly stand up. It was just lovely and I remember watching Frankel coming up there and he was one of my favourite horses. I miss Henry to this day.”

Red Rum’s first Grand National victory in 1973 will forever remain one of the fondest from the many commentaries – in this case radio – Thompson has done during his career.

He said: “The 1973 Grand National, Red Rum and Crisp. I’m the youngest ever commentator, 22, of the Grand National.

Red Rum and Brian Fletcher winning the 1973 Grand National
Red Rum and Brian Fletcher winning the 1973 Grand National (PA)

“There was Michael Seth-Smith at the first, Michael O’Hehir was at Becher’s, I was at Valentine’s and then I handed back to Peter Bromley and he did the best commentary I’ve ever heard on a race finish.

“Crisp and Richard Pitman were 30 lengths clear passing me and Red Rum got up on the line to win.

“Red Rum was probably the greatest horse of all time. There’s so many – Frankel, Brigadier Gerard, Nijinsky, Shergar, I’ve been lucky enough to see all of those.”

Jan Brueghel spearheads stellar list of King George contenders

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Jan Brueghel, Lambourn, Rebel’s Romance and Calandagan are among the eight horses left in a potentially star-studded King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot on Saturday.

Aidan O’Brien said at the weekend it was probable that Coronation Cup winner Jan Brueghel would be his number one hope, with Lambourn likely to be aimed at the St Leger, possibly via the Great Voltigeur at York.

O’Brien’s Epsom Oaks runner-up Whirl, who has been mentioned in terms of the Nassau Stakes at Goodwood, has stood her ground, while the Ballydoyle handler is also responsible for Continuous.

Like last year’s winner Goliath, Calandagan is trained by Francis-Henri Graffard and pushed Jan Brueghel all the way at Epsom. The Aga Khan Studs-owned gelding has since bagged an elusive Group One victory in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud.

The Charlie Appleby-trained Rebel’s Romance, meanwhile, showed he is as good as ever in recording a popular triumph in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot. Andrew Balding’s Group One winner Kalpana is another representative for the fillies, with Jessica Harrington’s Green Impact bolstering the Irish challenge.

Kalpana will be stepping up to a mile and a half for the first time this season, at the scene of her biggest success to date, the British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes back in October.

Her two outings this season have been in Ireland, finishing third in the Tattersalls Gold Cup and second in the Pretty Polly Stakes, both at the Curragh.

Juddmonte’s European racing manager Barry Mahon said: “Kalpana is all systems go for the King George. This has been her intended target since her last run in Ireland and she is in good shape.

“I think her two runs this year have been very solid. We know she is proven over a mile and a half on soft ground, so for her to produce those performances over 10 furlongs on quicker ground is very promising.

“We would be hopeful of a strong showing on Saturday back over 12 furlongs, for all it looks a competitive race. Calandagan is a top-class horse and we all saw what Jan Brueghel did at Epsom. I don’t know if Lambourn will line up as well, but a Derby winner always commands respect.”

See The Fire primed to go one better than last year at Goodwood

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Andrew Balding’s See The Fire will vie to go on better than last year in Goodwood’s Visit Qatar Nassau Stakes, with victory likely to make the Breeders’ Cup a tempting possibility at the end of the season.

The four-year-old was beaten a neck by Opera Singer when second in the Group One last season, and proved she had gone from strength to strength over the winter when winning the Middleton Stakes at York by 12 lengths in May.

Her most recent run was a fine third in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot, and another bid for the Nassau now looks her next step as Balding seeks to pave the way to the Breeders’ Cup.

He said: “She’s a beautifully-bred filly, by Sea The Stars, who won a Juddmonte International, out of Arabian Queen, who also won a Juddmonte International.

“She’s always looked a very smart filly. As a three-year-old, we didn’t really see the best of her until we got to the Nassau Stakes at Goodwood, where she was narrowly beaten.”

Of her last run Balding, added: “We thought she ran a super race at Ascot, against the boys, in the Prince of Wales’s. She’s had a little break since then with the view to preparing her for the Nassau again, and hopefully going one better than we did last year.

“The Prince of Wales’s this year was run at a ferocious gallop and it suited the closers. In hindsight, we rode her to sit in behind Los Angeles, and focus on beating him, which left us vulnerable at the end of the race. Having said that, they’re top-class horses and we might not have beaten them whatever we’d done.

“It was still a career-best performance, and she’ll have an easier time, you’d have thought, against her own sex, in the Nassau. It’s never easy at Group One level, but she’s going there in great shape.”

The Nassau Stakes serves as a ‘Win and You’re In’ qualifier for the Maker’s Mark Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf, granting the winner an automatic fees-paid berth into the $2million contest at Del Mar in November.

“The win and you’re in incentive is very important for any owner, it certainly pushes the Breeders’ Cup to the forefront of your priorities,” Balding said of the prospect of heading to California.

“The Breeders’ Cup is a hugely important meeting worldwide, but it does come at the end of a long season so it really depends on how she is training at the end of the season, and what happens between now and then, but it’s very much on the shortlist for our autumn campaign.

“It would be lovely to think one day we would have a horse good enough to be competitive in a Breeders’ Cup race, we’ve had a couple of runners so far but no joy, so it’s something very much that we are striving to achieve.”

Henri Matisse ready to renew Field Of Gold rivalry at Goodwood

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Aidan O’Brien has confirmed Henri Matisse on course for a rematch with his Royal Ascot conqueror Field Of Gold in the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood.

O’Brien’s Wootton Bassett colt ended last season in victory at the Breeders’ Cup and struck Classic gold in the French 2,000 Guineas before finding only John and Thady Gosden’s Field Of Gold too good in the St James’s Palace Stakes.

The Ballydoyle handler said: “He’s being trained for the Sussex and is going good so far. We’re very happy with him and he is progressing.”

Also a runner-up at the Royal meeting was Illinois, in the Gold Cup behind Trawlerman, and he too is set for a trip to the Sussex Downs, where he could be joined by an emerging stablemate.

O’Brien said: “At the moment he (Illinois) is going for the Goodwood Cup and it’s possible that Scandinavia could go there as well.

“We were very happy with his run in Ascot. We’d prefer he had another year before he went there (for the Gold Cup), but that is the way it worked out.”

O’Brien also outlined plans for Coventry Stakes winner Gstaad, who will be seen next in top-level action at the Curragh.

He said: “The plan is to go for the Phoenix Stakes (August 9). That is the way we are thinking at the moment.”

Racing Bulletin for 21/07/2025

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Diego Velazquez prevails in Minstrel Stakes

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Diego Velazquez showed his versatility in pulling out all the stops to land the Romanised Minstrel Stakes at the Curragh.

Aidan O’Brien’s son of Frankel was winning for the fifth time in his 10-race career, but was tackling the shortest distance he has encountered since making a winning debut over the same course and distance as a two-year-old.

The 11-8 favourite for the Group Two event in the hands of Ryan Moore, he was well away and always in a handy position alongside Adrian Murray’s Irish 1,000 Guineas runner-up California Dreamer.

Moore may have been low in the saddle inside the final quarter-mile but he had a willing ally and although the challengers were queuing up a furlong from home, it was only David Marnane’s 25-1 shot East Hampton who emerged from the pack to lay down a stern challenge in the closing stages.

Diego Velazquez, however, was never headed and even though East Hampton was within a neck at the winning post, the class of the Ballydoyle colt was always keeping him on top.

O’Brien said: “A mile is probably his trip. We were preparing him for Ascot and we had him in the stalls at Leopardstown, but he got upset and had to be withdrawn (from the Amethyst Stakes) and that upset his Ascot plan.

“I wasn’t confident enough to tell Ryan to ride him as forward as he would have liked (in the Queen Anne Stakes) because he hadn’t had a run. They only walked the first half of the race, so it was a non event really.

“We knew he would come forward a lot from then to today and he did well to win today over seven. He’s a brave horse and Ryan gave him a good ride.

“He’s a very well-made horse – powerful, strong, a great walker. Physically as a specimen he’s a tank really.

“We’ll go back up to a mile now for the Sussex or the Jacques le Marois, something like that.

“He’ll have no problem getting back up to nine furlongs or a mile and a quarter at the end of the season.”

Doncaster Classic firmly on the agenda for unbeaten Carmers

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Paddy Twomey and connections of Carmers are working back from the Betfred St Leger with their Queen’s Vase hero, as they plot the best route to Doncaster in September.

Unraced at two, the Wootton Bassett colt is a perfect three from three this season, most latterly in the Group Three at Royal Ascot, where he showed his stamina for a mile and six furlongs.

“Carmers is in good form. The plan is to go for the Leger and how we get there remains to be seen,” said Twomey.

“The owners are keen on going for the Voltigeur (at York) and there is also the Vinnie Roe in Leopardstown. We could stay at home and just go straight there, so we’ll see.”

Twomey – who said his beaten Ribblesdale Stakes favourite Catalina Delcarpio would be coming back to 10 furlongs – added: “He’s a grand horse and doesn’t show you much at home.

“He went to Ballinrobe and won, eight days later went to Navan and won, a month later went to Ascot and won. It’s hard to find a horse like him.”

One Look is all it takes for Twomey filly to star at the Curragh

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One Look relished a step up in trip when bouncing back to her best in the Curragh’s Al Shira’aa Racing Meadow Court Stakes.

The four-year-old burst onto the scene here at the Curragh in a valuable event as a two-year-old and has been one of Paddy Twomey’s top performers ever since.

She began this season in great form, winning the Park Express Stakes at this track before returning to give Porta Fortuna a fright in the Lanwades Stud Stakes, but was disappointing when last seen in the Duke of Cambridge Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Sent off at 100-30 for her first try at 10 furlongs, she relished the return to her beloved Curragh and served a reminder of her class in the hands of Wayne Lordan to deliver a decisive length success over Dermot Weld’s Azada.

Twomey said: “It was great to come here and win again at the Curragh. She seems to like the Curragh and is a lovely filly.

“Ascot didn’t work out for her, probably on ground quicker than she’d like and a trip as short as she’d want to go.

“She ran over nine and a half furlongs at Gowran last year and we felt on pedigree that stepping up in trip would suit her. She was brave today, she didn’t have the easiest passage through but won nicely.

Paddy Twomey with jockey Wayne Lordan after the victory of One Look
Paddy Twomey with jockey Wayne Lordan after the victory of One Look (Niall Carson/PA)

“She’s won a Group Three with a penalty, so we’re going to have to look at better races.

“She’s in the Nassau, she could run here in the Blandford Stakes on Champions Weekend and races on Arc weekend. We’ll have a think and pick our spots, but she’s a four-year-old now and will probably run more than she has in the past.”

Sir Mark Prescott’s Tasmania, the 5-2 favourite, had to settle for a running-on third.

Connections opt to miss the King George with Amiloc

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There will be no Ascot repeat for Amiloc, who will be a notable absentee from the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot on Saturday.

The Ralph Beckett-trained three-year-old enhanced his reputation with a fifth straight win in the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot, but a return to the scene of his finest hour is now off the cards, with the track’s midsummer Group One feature deemed to be coming too soon for David and Vimy Aykroyd’s unbeaten gelding.

“It’s a training decision and Ralph felt he could just do with a little bit more time having had a hard race at Royal Ascot,” said the Aykroyds’ racing manager Patrick Cooper on the decision to miss the weekend highlight.

“The real racing for this horse will be in the autumn time and Ralph thinks it’s a little too quick after his last race, it’s nothing more than that and nothing untoward.”

Amiloc was a general 10-1 chance for the King George, which could see Coronation Cup one-two Jan Brueghel and Calandagan renew rivalry, and holds entries for both the Sky Bet Great Voltigeur Stakes at York (August 20) and the Curragh’s Comer Group International Irish St. Leger (September 14) later in the summer.

However, connections appear undecided on their next move at this stage, as they anticipate heading overseas in search of valuable prizes before the year is out.

Cooper added: “We’ll hopefully go on the road with him in the autumn time, we haven’t overly thought about it, but the big-money races are at the end of the year.

“All those races in Hong Kong, Australia and America are all on the radar and I suspect we will be on the road at some stage.”

Sugar Island surprises O’Brien in winning Curragh start

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Aidan O’Brien’s Sugar Island produced a sweet performance on debut to claim the Sycamore Lodge Equine Hospital Irish EBF Fillies Maiden at the Curragh.

With Ryan Moore switching to the daughter of Dubawi following the absence of anticipated favourite Signora, the regally-bred juvenile was sent off at 9-2 for the seven-furlong contest, coming home decisively by half a length.

O’Brien said: “She was really just ready to start off. Ryan said she was green but still won nicely and he liked her.

“She’d have no problem going into a Group race over a mile and you’d like to give her another run before then.

“I thought she’d be still a maiden after this and then we could run her in another maiden. Sometimes it’s easier on them when they can have two runs in maidens.

“She’ll stay a mile and a quarter next year.”

O’Brien and Moore added to their tally with Light As Air in the Hong Kong Thoroughbred Breeders Alliance Irish EBF Maiden, the 1-2 favourite having last been seen finishing well down the field in the King George V Stakes at Royal Ascot.

O’Brien said: “We thought he was a well-handicapped horse. He was unlucky at Leopardstown and was also placed at Navan, but was a bit disappointing at Ascot last time.

“Today we thought he’d win easier than that, but we think there is more to come with him. Ryan gave him a good ride.

“We might give him a little more time now. He’d a tough race there and Ryan said the second horse kept coming with him all the way, but he didn’t lie down.

“He stays well and looks like he could get further.”

Deauville repeat firmly on the radar for Lazzat

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Royal Ascot sprint star Lazzat is pencilled in to make his next start on home turf, as the Prix Maurice de Gheest beckons again.

The gelded four-year-old, who is trained in France by Jerome Reynier and owned by Wathnan Racing, was an excellent winner of the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes on his first start for new connections.

His next port of call is likely to be the Deauville feature, a Group One he won by an impressive three lengths last season.

“We were delighted with him at Ascot, that was a very serious performance,” said Richard Brown, racing manager to Wathnan.

“He probably had a hard enough race, they always do at that level, so we said we’d give him a bit of a chance to give him a bit of a wind down and then wind him back up again.

“His next run will be in the Prix Maurice de Gheest and Jerome’s delighted with him, he came out of the race very well.

“We could have brought him back quicker if we’d wanted to, but we just thought we’d give him the chance now to be a fresh horse going into the autumn.

“We want to look after him, he’s a multiple Group One winner and he’s clearly a very high-class animal.

“We’ll race him with his long-term future in mind and hope he can be around for the next few years.”

All roads lead to the Arc for Grand Prix de Paris hero Leffard

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All roads lead to the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe for Leffard, after his emotional victory in the Grand Prix de Paris.

French trainer Jean-Claude Rouget was marking his return to the big time, having battled with cancer in recent years and seeing his string much reduced, also abandoning a plan to join forces with Jerome Reynier.

He had in fact been without a Group One success since the brilliant Ace Impact won the Arc in 2023.

Leffard races in the colours of Gerard Augustin-Normand, also the owner of Le Havre, Leffard’s sire and a Prix du Jockey Club winner for the same connections.

“He’ll run in the Prix Niel and the Arc, that will be his programme,” said former trainer John Hammond, racing and bloodstock adviser to Augustin-Normand, who owns the colt in company with Ecurie Antonio Caro.

“It was an emotional day given what Jean-Claude has been through, it was a big day, a big, big win.

“He’s a lovely looking horse, really good looking and very correct. He didn’t run at two, he’s a very nice type and hopefully he’ll be competitive in the autumn, but he’s going to have to step up a bit.

“On a line through the horse who finished third, New Ground, he was beaten about the same as he was by Lambourn in the Derby so we’ve a rough idea where we are. He was beaten five and a half lengths in Paris and five lengths at Epsom, so in theory that gives you a bit of a line.”

Hammond – twice an Arc-winning handler in his training days, courtesy of Suave Dancer and the magnificent Montjeu – added: “He’s got an outstanding pedigree and he means a lot to the owners, so it’s exciting.”

Racing Bulletin for 20/07/2025

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Action-packed Curragh Eyecatcher one to follow

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Aidan O’Brien’s Action is bred to be top class and there is plenty to look forward to judged on a debut full of promise at the Curragh.

The apparent second string of three runners for Ballydoyle, the son of Frankel is a half-brother to dual Derby winner Lambourn, so the seven-furlong distance he faced in the opener on Irish Oaks day was always likely to be on the short side.

Having sat in the slipstream of his front-running stablemate New Zealand for much of the way, Action looked to be back-pedalling passing the two-furlong marker, but the penny dropped late on and he was fairly motoring at the line, in the end beaten just a nose and half a length into third place.

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