William Haggas: inside track on Derby contender Maltese Cross

WH “I've been very happy with his progress. Physically and mentally, he's a good type. He does sweat between his hind legs, which is never usually a good sign. But he does it in exercise at home and he has done it every time he's run. So, it doesn't bother me. He doesn't sweat anywhere else. He has won his trial.

“What I thought at the time was a very good novice at Newbury has turned out not so good! But he’s a nice horse. How nice, I don't know really. He’s done nothing wrong yet and he's got a lot more to offer. Our fella stays, but the one thing that could jeopardize his chances is rain. He’s pretty much a fast-ground horse, so we wouldn't want it soft or heavy. I don't think it's going to be that, but who knows? He will stay.”

WH “I don't want to predict what I think might happen! Aidan’s obviously very strong; he's the one who's got all the horses bred to win the Derby and the focus from Coolmore is very much on the Derby.

“The way I read it is I think Constitution River, the best he’s got at that distance, is, by all accounts, going to France, although that's not confirmed completely yet. Aidan will put a few in with Benvenuto Cellini to presumably ensure a good gallop. It’ll be a fascinating race as it always is and it's a very hard race to win.”

WH “I think that always helps, of course. But a normal person wouldn’t do in a year what the King and the Queen do in a week. 

Their diaries are full up to nine months in advance. Despite that, what has been fantastic with obviously the late Queen and the current monarch and his wife is that they appear to have five free days in June to go to Royal Ascot, and that is hugely important. 

Of course, royal presence helps, but if we could flush out a runner for the King and the Queen in the Derby, then that would be wonderful!”

WH “It is hard for a three-year-old race to capture that pre-eminence when you have got the southern hemisphere involved. So, you can forget Australia and New Zealand.

“The Japanese might give it a go but it's a complicated race quite early in the Northern Hemisphere season, and there's always been debate about whether it's too early in the year and whether it should be run over a shorter distance. I don't agree with either of those. I think it's in the right spot. I think it's a very good test.

“I think that's what the Derby winner should be and what we have to do, and this is a separate issue, we have to make the Derby winner ‘more sexy’ at stud. It’s only Coolmore who really promote Derby winners, and they've been very successful at doing so. We have to get more people trying to breed horses to run in or win the Derby.

“At the moment, the commercial aspect has meant they've gone to ‘cheap speed’ and various committees of the BHA are trying very hard to give incentives to horses that are bred to stay further. That’s a really good thing because it changes the mindset. You don't have to persuade me to buy horses that need time and distance, but my mindset's changing that way even more. If you get one that can compete at a high level as a three-year-old over a mile and a quarter or a mile and a half, you will have the best fun then and for years to come.

“All the big races in the world, barring the odd one in Australia, the Arc, the King George, the Japan Cup, they're all over the same distance and the mile and a half is the traditional distance, never mind the Caulfield Cup in Australia at Aus$5m, the Queen Elizabeth in Sydney or the Sheema Classic. If you get a horse of that ilk, I just can't understand why more people don't try and find one.”