English Derby winner City of Troy prevails gamely in Eclipse

City of Troy, making his first start since winning the Group 1 Derby at Epsom, remained on form Saturday at Sandown when he dug in to win the Group 1 Eclipse in his first start against older horses.

Hans Anderson set a clear pace, with City of Troy situated just outside of Ghostwriter in the stalking flight. The pacesetter, City of Troy’s stablemate in the Aidan O’Brien barn, continued clear past the turn for home.

Jockey Ryan Moore produced the Derby winner in the lane, and they made a run outside of Hans Anderson as Ghostwriter bid inside. City of Troy forged to the front past the quarter-mile mark. Al Riffa made a lively late run under a drive. Though City of Troy drifted inward late, he found enough to hold by a length over Al Riffa.

It was another length back to Ghostwriter in third. See the Fire, Hans Anderson and Dancing Gemini completed the order of finish. Jayarebe and Stay Alert were scratched due to unsuitable ground.

City of Troy stopped the clock at 2:09.80 for 1 1/4 miles over turf rated soft. The 1-5 favorite in World Pool pari-mutuel wagering, he paid $2.40 to win and $2.04 to place.

City of Troy is a 3-year-old son of Triple Crown winner Justify out of the Galileo mare Forever Together. The victory in the Eclipse brought his career record to 6: 5-0-0, with the only blemish being a perplexing ninth-place finish in the 2000 Guineas (G1) at Newmarket on May 4. City of Troy has won at the Group 1 level three times. In addition to winning the Eclipse and the Derby, he also prevailed in the Dewhurst (G1) at Newmarket last fall.

The Eclipse offers its winner an automatic entry and travel incentives for the California Crown John Henry Turf (G2) on Sept. 28 at Santa Anita. However, in a post-race interview with ITV Racing, part-owner John Magnier made no mention of this spot. Magnier referred to the Breeders’ Cup Classic as “a dream”, citing previous attempts with horses like Declaration of War and Giant’s Causeway, though did not commit to a next race for City of Troy.