Military Order joint-favourite for Derby after Lingfield win

Military Order shot to the top of the Betfred Derby market as he went one better than his brother Adayar to claim the Fitzdares Lingfield Derby Trial Stakes.

Adayar finished second in this in 2021 before going on to triumph at Epsom and his high-class sibling took his record to three wins from four starts in the manner of a high-class operator himself.

With waterlogging to Lingfield’s turf track meaning this was run on the all-weather for the first time since Main Sequence’s victory in 2012, William Buick had Military Order travelling nicely behind the pace set by James Tate’s Regal Empire

The pack began to bunch as the eight-strong field approached the home bend and when Regal Empire angled out spinning the turn, Buick seized the opportunity to nimbly slip up the inner and set sail for home with Ed Walker’s Waipiro the only one to match strides with the athletic son of Frankel.

The duo went toe-to-toe up the home straight, but it was the even-money favourite who came out on top by a length and a quarter at the winning post, with a further four and a quarter lengths back to the King’s Circle Of Fire in third.

Although the race has provided Charlie Appleby with a Derby winner in the past, it is the first time he has won the Listed event and Military Order now heads to Epsom as Betfair’s 4-1 joint-favourite alongside Auguste Rodin, while Coral make the colt their outright 7-2 market leader.

Charlie Appleby said: “I was delighted with that, he learnt plenty today and it was a great ride by William.

“We were going in there today with confidence based on what he had achieved to date.

“It was a mile and a half with the race being on the all-weather track, so we saw him see it out well.

“He has a pedigree and a profile there that is coming along very nicely into hopefully a Derby horse. I know he has now gone joint-favourite (for the Derby) and deservedly so. We will obviously now be keeping an eye on what happens next week in the Dante, but I was very pleased with him.

“I’m just delighted to see Military Order confirm he is the horse we feel he hopefully is going forward.”

William Buick said: “He did everything I asked him. He’s come through that really well and will have learned plenty, not that he needed to be shown.

“Today was a different test to Newbury, but when I asked him to quicken into a gap running downhill he didn’t hesitate. He was totally relaxed and beautifully balanced.”

Alex Merriam, Appleby’s assistant, said: “It was pretty straightforward. It took him a while to get rolling, but he saw it out strongly.

“All systems are go for Epsom, he’s had a run on grass and now a run down a bit of a hill.

“Last year we were blessed with some good milers but this year we have some nice mile-and-a-quarter and mile-and-a-half types.

“Military Order is a similar size to Adayar, but a sharper model.”

He added: “Castle Way is a good prospect, but I think he will go to Ascot (King Edward VII Stakes).

“Flying Honours is going to York and it will be interesting to see how he gets on in the Dante if we get some decent ground there.”

Charlie Appleby won the Fitzdares Oaks Trial Fillies’ Stakes for the first time as Eternal Hope put her name into the Betfred Oaks picture at Lingfield.

Always well placed by William Buick tracking the pace set by stablemate Sunset Point and the 6-5 favourite Be Happy, she was in the perfect spot to strike rounding the turn for home and showed a likeable turn of foot to outgun the Aidan O’Brien-trained market leader in the straight.

Although Coral introduced the filly into the Oaks market at 16-1, the daughter of Teofilo would need supplementing into the line-up for Epsom’s June 2 showpiece.

Charlie Appleby said afterwards: “The filly had experience on the synthetics and travelled round there well and picked up well and saw it out well as well, so I was really pleased with that.

“What sort of strength of depth was in there, we will have to wait and see.

“But in terms of supplementing her for an Oaks, we didn’t run her in the Pretty Polly at Newmarket because of the ground so that would have to be something we keep an eye on and therefore the likelihood is we will look more towards the Ribblesdale with her.

“I’m not saying we won’t (supplement) and we will be keeping an eye on the Oaks picture.”

Although Eternal Hope's next move will become clearer in time, what is not in doubt is her class and she impressed her rider.

“She’s a lovely filly who started her career late and can only improve as that was just her third run,” said Buick of the 9-4 scorer.

“She’s not in at Epsom, but I’m sure they’ll have a good think about supplementing her.”

Alex Merriam, Appleby’s assistant, added: “She picked up well and did it nicely. It would have been lovely to put her on turf, but she’s suited by a sound surface.

“This race looked competitive without being red hot, so let’s see if it stops raining.

“We will take a look at what the ground is like closer to the time (of the Oaks).”

Sacred upheld her fine record fresh to oblige favourite-backers in style and lead home a William Haggas one-three in Lingfield’s Fitzdares Chartwell Fillies’ Stakes.

The five-year-old was the undoubted class act of the line-up and was anchored in rear alongside Haggas-trained stablemate Queen Aminatu in the early stages, as Richard Hughes’ Candle Of Hope was away well from a wide draw and led from Nell Gwyn third Secret Angel.

Rounding the final bend Ryan Moore and the 13-8 market leader still had plenty of traffic ahead of them, but soon began to chart their path to the winning line.

It did not take long for the duo to have old rival Sandrine covered as Sacred proved she still possessed plenty of zip to record a clear-cut two-and-a-quarter length victory.

Queen Aminatu plugged on for the bronze medal and in the aftermath of the Group Three contest, the Cheveley Park-owned winner was handed quotes of 10-1 from 14s by both Paddy Power and Betfair for the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot.

“We’ve kept her in training to try to win a Group One remembering she was only beaten a length in the Jubilee last year,” said Max McLoughlin management assistant to the owners.

“She’s a high-class filly and a Group Two winner, and it was great to see her do it so impressively.

“She will go to Ascot and could have another crack at the Jubilee, although she’s also in the Duke of Edinburgh.”

Moore added: “She’s a lovely filly who has won multiple Group races, and the all-weather round here suited her.

“She quickened up very well and I was impressed with her. She’s a seven-furlong filly.”