Coral-Eclipse Stakes
Group 1, Sandown Park 15:35
£750,000 guaranteed,
3yo plus,
1m 1f 209y, Class 1   
Saturday 5th July 2025

1 Delacroix 3/1
2 Ombudsman 6/4F
3 Ruling Court 4/1
6 ran Distances: nk, 1¾l, shd
Time: 2m 5.92s (fast by 1.08s)

And from the clouds—Delacroix! What looked for all the world like a Derby afterthought turned into Coral-Eclipse redemption as Ryan Moore produced a ride plucked from the very top shelf to hand Aidan O’Brien a record-extending ninth win in the Sandown showpiece.

Six went to post in this year’s renewal of the Group One that traditionally pitches youth against experience—and with four Classic-generation colts locking horns with the proven class of Ombudsman and Sosie, it was always going to be a race of tactical intrigue and bruising quality.

It was Ombudsman, the 6-4 favourite and Royal Ascot’s Prince of Wales’s hero, who looked to have timed things just right—Buick creeping into it, poised like a coiled spring, and striking for home inside the final furlong. Job done?

Not quite.

Because storming down the outside, late and fast and flying, came the navy and orange silks—Delacroix, with Moore delivering a drive as relentless as it was precise. Last turning in, first at the line. Neck in hand. Wow.

“It wasn’t plan A, B, or C, to be honest!” Moore admitted to ITV, half-laughing, half-relieved. “He broke fine but there was no pace. I was stuck three wide and had to concede. William had the rail on the bigger, older horse, so I waited, went around—and hoped.”

And hope paid off. What we saw in the final two furlongs was sheer electricity. The son of Dubawi, out of the great racemare Tepin, finally confirmed what his pedigree has always promised. O’Brien’s quote said it all:

“You don’t tell Ryan what to do—you just try to keep up with what he’s doing!”

The Ballydoyle maestro had thought his colt was a ten-furlong type. Moore, cool as ice, thought he might be a miler. The truth? Perhaps somewhere gloriously in between. Either way, the acceleration Delacroix showed when asked the question was something to behold.

“He’s always looked a top-class horse,” said O’Brien, “but this was the day he proved it. They stacked them up, and he just exploded. That turn of foot—it was mind-blowing.”

The market reacted accordingly: Paddy Power slashed Delacroix to 5-1 (from 16s) for next month’s Juddmonte International, with Ombudsman eased slightly to 4s, and Field Of Gold holding favouritism at 5-4.

Where next? That’s in the hands of the Coolmore partners—but whether he sticks at ten or comes back to a mile, one thing’s for sure: with that kind of finish in his locker, Delacroix is now a genuine force in the older horse division.

Coral-Eclipse (British Champions Series) (Group 1)
£750,000 guaranteed, 3yo plus, 1m 1f 209y, Class 1
6 ran
Going: Good to Firm, Firm in places

POS. (DRAW) DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 (3)    Delacroix 3 8-13 A P O'Brien Ryan Moore 3/1
2 (5) nk Ombudsman 4 9-9 John & Thady Gosden William Buick 6/4F
3 (1) 1¾ Ruling Court 3 8-13 Charlie Appleby Oisin Murphy 4/1
4 (2) shd Camille Pissarro 3 8-13 A P O'Brien Christophe Soumillon 14/1
5 (6) 1½ Hotazhell 3 8-13 Mrs John Harrington Shane Foley 25/1
6 (4) ¾ Sosie 4 9-9 A Fabre Maxime Guyon 11/2