Monterosso reigns in King Edward VII Stakes
The Derby form was put under scrutiny for the first time in the Group Two King Edward VII Stakes and came up short as Monterosso provided Frankie Dettori with a 44th Royal Ascot winner.
Having led for 10 furlongs in the Derby, At First Sight was quickly into the lead again, with Johnny Murtagh not pushing too hard too soon. On the turn he was disputing the lead with Green Moon but Dettori had both of them in his sights on Monterosso.
When Dettori committed Monterosso still looked a shade green, as he cut across Green Moon, but there was no doubting the colt’s superiority over this field as he beat Arctic Cosmos by two-and-a-quarter lengths with Buzzword – the best of the Derby runners – the same distance away in third.
The winner’s enclosure at Royal Ascot is another world from where Monterosso started out, fifth in a maiden at Wolverhampton last November, but he has won five of his next seven starts and this win represented a turnaround in form from when he was beaten four lengths by Green Moon in a handicap at Newbury last month.
Mark Johnston, the winning trainer, said: “We’ve been gradually stepping him up in class and it’s paid off. He ran his first four races on the all-weather, but when he went to Ripon in April he was so green. He couldn’t handle the bends or the surface - everything went wrong, but he still won. We knew we had a class horse.
“He’s a completely different animal now. Frankie was full of confidence. He said that he didn’t think trip was an issue – he’s got the speed for a mile and the attitude for a mile-and-a-half.
“It’s one step at a time, but we’ll go home and think of a plan."
Dettori, who picked up a two-day ban for careless riding, was thinking of another step up in class for the horse, nominating the Irish Derby as a possible target. “We’ve stepped him up in distance, he keeps improving and I thought it was a tremendous performance today and perhaps a pop at the Irish Derby could be on the cards. He is still learning and he was running about but that is a good sign as it means that he is not quite tired yet.”
Arctic Cosmos could now be on the Classic trail himself having showed vastly improved form. “That was a huge run, a great run,” trainer John Gosden said. “We will definitely put him away now and bring him back for the St Leger, with a view to possibly giving him a run before that. I could still run him in a Listed race if I wanted to.
“I could have run him in another handicap and picked up £8,000 for being placed or come here and collect £29,000. We came here and now he’s Group Two-placed.”
At First Sight was a disappointing favourite for trainer Aidan O’Brien and his jockey, Johnny Murtagh, said: “I’ve got no excuses.”
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