DOMINIC KING: It's so sad that Desert Crown can't thrill us at York

DOMINIC KING: It’s a crying shame that injury has robbed Desert Crown of a tantalising showdown with Paddington at York… and why the pressure’s on Hugo Palmer

• Desert Crown was being built up towards the Juddmonte International at York
• But the 2022 Derby winner sustained a season-ending fetlock injury on Sunday
• Hugo Palmer remains focused on delivering success for Michael Owen’s stable

The good ones are easy to spot. They always have been. Even on a busy Newmarket morning, when a conveyor belt of galloping horses flash up Warren Hill one group after another, the star in the crowd will always stand out.

Last Friday was a case in point. Sir Michael Stoute had sent his team across town from his Freemason Lodge stables for some routine work, shortly after 7.30am, and had made the short drive to be in place for when the action started.

His focus, primarily, was the handsome colt holding second position in this equine peloton. There are no names or numbers on the saddles of horses to identify them when they are working but you could instinctively tell it was Desert Crown, the brilliant winner of the 2022 Epsom Derby.

Everything about him was different to the rest. The comfortable manner in which he made up four lengths quickly to sit on the tail of his lead horse, the effortless way he floated up the steep incline and how he puffed out his chest as he made his way back down the hill to do it all again.

This wasn’t one of those pieces of work that become the stuff of legend. There was no push button acceleration to send Desert Crown bounding clear; nobody was hurrying to strike a wager, armed with his priceless information but the whole scene was utterly captivating.

Sir Michael Stoute’s 2022 Derby winner Desert Crown sustained a season-ending fetlock injury

Here we were, five days away from the Juddmonte International, doing exactly what you should do on this hallowed piece of turf: dream. Desert Crown had only run once since his authoritative day on Epsom’s Downs but the imminent prospect of seeing him tackle Paddington was tantalising.

All that was required of Desert Crown was to do one more gallop on Sunday then a breeze on Tuesday and he would be packed off to the Knavesmire – scene of his eye-catching Dante Stakes triumph in May 2022 – to run for his life under William Buick.

Five days, however, with this particular horse was an eternity. When it was said to one of Stoute’s trusted staff that all looked well, it was made clear there was a long way to go. You don’t ever take anything for granted in horse racing and, bitterly, we would be shown why once again.

A bleak bulletin was issued on Sunday afternoon, via owner Saaed Suhail’s racing manager Bruce Raymond, that Desert Crown had been injured that morning. All thoughts about future targets were on hold, recovery was the only thing on the mind of connections.

What a crying shame his immense potential might go unfulfilled. Desert Crown didn’t just win his Derby, he dismantled his rivals and the turn of foot he displayed almost came with a sound effect of “woosh!” – few are blessed with that mix of speed, stamina and balance he has.

Since then, though, there has been a succession of fitness issues that have left him at home in his box when the biggest contests have taken place, a thoroughbred version of Cinderella being prevented from attending the ball.

There should have been many more big wins. It is difficult not to think, for instance, he would have gone very close in this year’s King George and Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes, given how his form stacks up against those who finished first and second in that race, Hukum and Westover.

Desert Crown was being built up towards the Juddmonte International at York

Stoute, absolutely, would have loved the challenge of trying to stop Paddington’s winning spree at York – he shares the record, with Paddington’s trainer Aidan O’Brien, for most victories in the Juddmonte, Ulysses in 2017 being the most recent of his six triumphs.

Instead, Stoute is left to wonder what the future will hold for Desert Crown. The 77-year-old has a smaller stable of horses these days, which explains a total of 22 wins from 130 runners this campaign, but few possess his ability to get one in top form when it really matters.

To look at Stoute, with the cogs in his brain ticking over, and Desert Crown, with his swagger and his power, last Friday you could see everything was set for a bold show. Whether it would have been good enough to win, we will never know. A dream, in this case, has been extinguished.

Why the pressure’s on Palmer

Plenty of interesting narratives to follow at York over the coming days, not least to see how the horses from Manor House Stables – the venture of Michael Owen – fare.

Hugo Palmer, who saddled Galileo Gold to win the 2000 Guineas in 2016, trains for Owen, having left his Newmarket base to take the opportunity in Cheshire in February 2022 after previous trainer Tom Dascombe had been sacked.

Trainer Hugo Palmer (left) with Michael Owen (right) at Chester racecourse

There is a high demand for winners at Manor House, particularly when there is racing at Chester, and they have enjoyed down the years at the Ebor Festival, including with the Ever Given in the lucrative two-year-old sales race in 2021.

Some rumours have circulated that Palmer might not be in Cheshire for the long-term but he has been looking at buying new stock for the yard and remains focused on delivering success. His runners at York this week include the carefully-named two-year-old Balon D’Or.

Andrea Atzeni claimed his second Group One win this decade with Vandeek in Prix Morny

Elegant Andrea will be missed

Hard to believe that it is seven years since Andrea Atzeni scorched up the Knavesmire on the back of Postponed, who was such a brilliant winner of the Juddmonte International.

Atzeni was on the crest of a wave back then, riding a stack of Group One winners with his jobs including being retained rider for Qatar Racing and then Sheikh Mohamed Obaid Al Maktoum. Being Italian and having such an elegant style, comparisons with Frankie Dettori were inevitable.

What was even harder to believe, though, was his win on Vandeek in Sunday’s Prix Morny was only his second Group One win this decade (Emaraaty Ana in the 2021 Haydock Sprint Cup the other). He moves to Hong Kong this week to pursue new opportunities. His talent here will be missed.

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