The Markus Jooste part-owned Galileo colt Douglas Macarthur has taken a further walk in the 2017 Investec Epsom Derby market after managing only fifth in Saturday’s Gr 2 Royal Lodge Stakes over a mile at Newmarket.

Meanwhile, the Jooste and Bernard Kantor-owned Yorker, formerly-trained by Geoff Woodruff,  is due to run at the two day Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe meeting in France over the weekend, where the South African-owned and former Paul Lafferty-trained Harry’s Son will also be running. Piere Strydom was due to fly over to France yesterday (Monday). He will be putting the final touches to Harry’s Son’s preparation before renewing his hitherto successful partnership with him in the race on Sunday. Strydom might also ride Yorker at the meeting on Saturday.

Douglas Macarthur was the stable elect of an Aiden O’Brien-trained coupling in The Royal Lodge, but could only stay on at one pace and was beaten 2,25 lengths. None of O’Brien’s five Epsom Derby winners Galileo (2001), High Chaparral (2002), Camelot (2012), Ruler of the World (2013) and Australia (2014) lost a race in their build up to the big race, bar on debut.

Douglas Macarthur appeared to fitting into this trend when slamming his rivals in a Leopardstown maiden over a mile on 21 July by five lengths in his second career start. He had been very green when finishing last at odds of 2/5 on debut over seven furlongs. The way he powered clear of his rivals in his win impressed the bookmakers to the extent that they made him the joint 16/1 favourite for the Derby together with his stablemate Churchill.

However, he drifted out to 25/1 when only managing a 2,5 length 3^rd in his next start in the Gr 3 Champions Juvenile Stakes over a mile at Leopardstown, where he started 8/13 favourite. He has now drifted out to a best price of 50/1.

However, there is still hope a South African could present the Epsom Derby trophy to another South African next year (Bernard Kantor is Investec’s co-founder and managing director and presents the trophy to winning connections every year).

O’Brien described Douglas Macarthur as “babyish” after his only win. Jooste’s racing manager Derek Brugman received an email from O’Brien after Saturday’s Royal Lodge which confirmed this still held true. Douglas Macarthur apparently shows the great trainer an immense amount at home. However, he said he lacked pace, so definitely needed further, as well as time to mature.

Jooste owns the horse in partnership with Coolmore kingpins John Magnier, Michael Tabor and Derrick Smith.

Meanwhile, Churchill, after losing on debut in May, has won his next four starts including a Gr 1 over seven furlongs at The Curragh by 4,25 lengths. He is now the lone favourite at 12/1 for the Derby, while Royal Lodge winner, the Godolphin-owned Best Of Days, is 33/1.

Brugman said Yorker, who has his niggles, was as sound as they could possibly have him ahead of Saturday’s race at Chantilly, where the Arc meeting will take place this year due to renovations at Longchamp. The William Haggas-trained seven-year-old Jet Master gelding will travel to France unless the ground becomes too soft. At present the weather forecast suggests the ground will remain good. Yorker made his overseas debut, after an 800 day layoff, at York on August 20 in the Gr 3 Strensall Stakes over a mile and a furlong and finished an excellent 1,25 length second under Pat Cosgrave at odds of 14/1. He then lined up as 6/4 favourite on September 14 at Sandown in the Listed Fortune Stakes over a mile and 14 yards and this time went down by only a neck. The connections were a touch disappointed, but Brugman said there were genuine excuses. “The pace was too slow and he did not have cover. He quickened well enough, but not as well as we know he can, and this could also have been due to the 2^nd run after a rest factor, considering he had been out for 800 days.”

Harry’s Son will be running in the Gr 1 Prix de la Floret over seven furlongs on Sunday.

Lafferty said experienced French jockey Gerald Mosse had described him as a “very, very nice horse” after galloping him last week. He added the five-year-old Haradasun entire’s subsequent blood picture had been exactly how they had wanted it. A look at the Australian-bred’s career record shows he enjoys running fresh, so the connections have duly decided to send him straight into the race.

Harry’s Son has been trained out of Laredo in Spain by Cesar Alonso since departing Dubai. Lafferty’s assistant Roy Waugh has been in Laredo permanently to oversee his program. The Prix de la Floret is usually run over a seven furlong course at Longchamp, which according to Lafferty is known as “The Toboggan” due to its up and down nature. However, the Chantilly seven furlong course is flatter, which will suit Harry’s Son. Seven furlongs (1400m) is his ideal trip.

However, the connections were being realistic about his chances in such an international Gr 1 event and Lafferty said they would be “over the moon” with a place. If he does finish in the first three he will be invited to a US$3 million event in Hong Kong.

Meanwhile, Brugman also spoke of Jooste’s South African-based star Legal Eagle. He said he would likely take the same route as last year, i.e. running a preparation race at Turffontein before going to Cape Town to defend his crown in the Gr 1 L’Ormarin’s Queen’s Plate. He would then attempt to go one step better than his second place finish in the Met. However, rather than head back to Johannesburg after the Met, Brugman said there was a chance he might join a number of other horses who will be flown overseas after the Cape Summer Of Champions Season.

David Thiselton