Alice Haynes unhappy with Epsom Dash drama | report, reaction and free video replay

There were no such problems for Andrea Atzeni aboard Navello - who was wearing cheekpieces for the first time - and he finished strongly down the centre of the track, hitting the line strongly.

The winning distances were a short-head and a head. Zarzyni finished fourth and One Night Stand fifth.

Clifford Lee, rider of Silky Wilkie, said: "I got stopped in my run, I was very unlucky not to get up, I thought if I had the gap a little bit earlier I would have gone for it and he would have kept going; I was very unlucky.

"I was stuck for about four or five strides, it felt like more, it's always tempting a bit where the track angles downhill a bit and the ones on the outside are rolling in all the time."

There were no such concerns for George Boughey who was delighted at saddling his second winner of the Derby Festival.

He said: "It has been quite a long term plan for him.

"He does like fast ground and I felt the strong pace would suit him. It was a bit of a nervy last furlong but he's progressive; I know he was an early two-year-old but he was still very immature last year but I was pretty keen to persuade the owner to keep him in training with this race in mind so it's nice when a plan comes off.

"He was very immature physically and hadn't fully grown. He won a race or two last year but he didn't go to the heights that he might do this year. He travelled a bit better in the cheekpieces this time, he doesn't do much at home but he does it on the track anyway.

"There's a race at Goodwood for him, a similar sort of configuration of track, downhill, a fast five, strong pace will probably suit him so we might just wait for Goodwood."

Atzeni, added: “We didn’t think stall 5 was ideal, but in this sort of race there’s nothing you can do, as by the time you try to change something the race is over. We had to take a gamble and see where we landed.

“Obviously they went a good gallop and when he hit the rising ground he picked up nicely. I had a good one to aim at here in Clarendon House and Dan Muscutt, but when I got to the line I didn’t realise there was another horse near the rail. But I thought I’d won anyway.”

The drama didn't end there as the stewards called an enquiry into the possibility that not all of the starting stalls gates opened at the same time. It was deemed that no significant advantage was gained and the result (and race stood) but Alice Haynes was among the trainers left far from happy with both the events and the outcome.

In the aftermath of the race it was discovered that stalls 16-20 had opened fractionally later than the rest of the field, which goes someway to explaining the disappointing showing from unplaced 6/1 favourite Live In The Moment, who was drawn in stall 20.

Haynes was called to the stewards’ room to explain the run following the race and was left disappointed on finding out her charge’s chance had been compromised.

She said: “Head-on we thought we had missed the break. Then I got a couple of pictures sent through to me and the stewards called me in to ask me about the disappointing run.

“It was very clear that stalls 16 to 20 broke fractionally slower, due to the gates not opening as quick. The stewards said that the horse in gate 14 (Alligator Alley) caused the gates to do that (by hitting the stall and triggering the stalls) and it didn’t gain an advantage by doing that – and that was the end of it really.

“It is frustrating for the team and everyone. It is one of the fastest five furlongs there is and we have got a natural front runner. The horse pecked jumping out. I can understand why and Kieran (O’Neill) lost an iron. These sprinters are racehorses geared up for the job – doing five furlongs in less than 54 seconds. You are meant to have the golden highway, drawn high with the best draw and we could not gain an advantage of that because the gates broke slower.

“Nothing can be done now. The race can’t be void or anything like that. In future something else should be looked into for this in support of the rest of the horses who have been caused the disadvantage.”

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