CITY OF TROY very nearly fluffed his lines for the second time this season in a nail-biting Coral-Eclipse.
If you took the 1-4 about Aidan O’Brien’s Derby hero, you were made to sweat in the final furlong as he clung on grimly by a length from the fast-finishing Al Riffa.
Last year he was labelled the next wonder horse, but on his comeback in the 2,000 Guineas he was more wooden horse as he trailed home in ninth having fallen into a hole at half-way.
Genius trainer Aidan O’Brien somehow worked his magic to get him back to his best at Epsom a month ago as he powered home under Ryan Moore.
But this performance, while far from a backward step, was nowhere near as convincing, for all there was the readymade excuse of rain-softened ground.
O’Brien said: “We were very worried about the ground. He is a beautiful moving horse, so I say he won in spite of it, it was very tough.
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“We walked the course and I felt it was softer than when he won the Dewhurst as a two-year-old, so we had a serious chat about taking him out.
“I think 15 years ago the lads might have taken him out, but we are so lucky that they enjoy their racing so much that they wanted to be here and wanted to run him.
“I think he actually won better than it looked, he picked up well when the second horse came to him, so I’m delighted with him.”
The question is, which is the real City Of Troy?
Is it the one who laboured through the mud at Sandown, or the one who dismantled the Derby field over a mile and a half at Epsom?
This was efficient and workmanlike, and he did at least pull out a bit extra under pressure with Al Riffa and Ghostwriter biting at his backside.
Hopefully he can produce the ‘wow’ moment we have all been waiting for when he heads to York next month for the Juddmonte International.
Or maybe he is saving that for the Breeders’ Cup Classic at Del Mar in November – the race that is number one on Ballydoyle’s hit list.
It was less thrills and more no-frills, but he got the job done on a very important day. The presence of the big boss, John Magnier, told you that.
The Coolmore supremo hadn’t been to Sandown since Hawk Wing won this race in 2002, and he admitted himself that he was hoping for a bit more from the colt.
He said: “It wasn’t what we were expecting, to be honest. We won’t make excuses, he has won the race, but I don’t think he liked the ground.
“There is no point us talking about this horse anymore, he has to go and do it himself. His clothes are off and he’s in the bed, so now it’s over to him!
“He has only been beaten once in his life and we are complaining, so that tells you what we think about him.”
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