Reaction from connections following the draw for the Betfred Derby at Epsom

Kevin Blake, co-owner of James J Braddock (Stall 13)

“I think he revealed himself at Leopardstown. We always thought he was very nice, and he has progressed into a smart middle-distance horse. But we were facing up to the Ballydoyle battalions and just hoping for a nice run.

“He excelled himself when he managed to nip Pierre Bonnard at Leopardstown. Things got very serious after that, and here we are. It's pretty surreal being here, to be honest!

“I think Pierre Bonnard seems to have a lot of confidence behind him. He's shortening up the whole time. And with my James J hat on, I think we beat him fair and square. You know, we beat him on our fourth run and it was Pierre's sixth. I feel we've got scope to sharpen up in terms of professionalism.

“I think we're going to stay the trip really well. Apologies to everyone. I've been doing a rain dance for the last few days! It's working really nicely. I won't stop.

“Joseph (O’Brien, trainer) is really happy, really happy with the horse, and with Dylan Browne McMonagle, we've got a great man on top.

“And to come back to the subject matter (the draw), I came here thinking, right, I'd love to be in the middle. I'd rather be higher than lower. And just looking at the way the draw has distributed, I think we're all really, really happy with that draw.”

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Kevin Buckley, Coolmore’s UK representative, representing owners of Action (Stall 11), Benvenuto Cellini (12), Christmas Day (5) and Pierre Bonnard (8)

“I think Benvenuto Cellini is a worthy favourite. He’s in the same stall number (12) as Australia (2014) and Serpentine (2020) won out of.

“I have to be happy with the draws. I've always had a personal soft spot for Pierre Bonnard, but I was equally very impressed with what Benvenuto Cellini did up at Chester - I thought that was a perfect prep for The Derby. So, fingers crossed.

“It is interesting Christmas Day is drawn in five, which is the same stall his sire, Camelot, came out of when he won The Derby (2012). He was third in the Dante behind Action, whose brother, Lambourn, won The Derby last year.”

Alex Elliott, representing Valmont, owners of Bay Of Brilliance (Stall 9)

“I am delighted. I keep thinking something's going to go wrong at some stage, and I thought it might be today! But we’d be taking that draw that all day long. It looks like there's a lot of the horses that are going to go forward, will be on our inside.”

Sam Haggas, bloodstock agent and son of William Haggas, trainer of Maltese Cross (Stall 1)

“You can't help what draw you get, but what you can control is what you do with your draw. I suppose six years ago, you could have called it (stall 1) a coffin box, but we've seen City Of Troy (2024) and Adayar (2021) come out of it in recent years.

“You've just got to be positive and we'll have a plan and see if we can execute it. It is great that Tom (Marquand, jockey) has gotten happier and happier with the horse as the year has gone on and the horse keeps coming forward.

“It's great that Tom is going there confident in his mount. I owe it to Tom really. It's good that he's confident and happy with the horse and where he's at.

“I think both owner and trainer are very keen to run. The trials are there for a reason. He's come through both of his runs this year and thrown his own hat into the ring. I think owner and trainer are both happy to go forward given what he's done this year.”

Anna Lisa Balding, wife of Andrew Balding, trainer of Item (3) and A Taste Of Glory (7)

“We've been lucky with (owner) Ahmed Al Shaikh. He's had horses with us who have finished second twice at big, big prices and A Taste of Glory might do the same. He's drawn seven, just like Pour Moi was (in 2011) and fingers crossed.

“We were hoping to go from Bath to Doncaster for the Group One last season, but the ground went against him, so Andrew decided to just wait. The Dante was a good place to start.

“I think, as Sam (Haggas) said, you can do nothing about the draw, it's what you do with it. I think you're looking back to Slip Anchor, the last one that was drawn three. He's in great form, and hopefully he can win from there.

“I think he looked really good in the Dante. Everyone was picking up the race beforehand, and he really delivered very well on the day, and he finished strong. He might be a little bit green in front, so hopefully he's learned plenty.

“I suppose the one thing for us is we probably haven't had the conditions weather-wise to do quite as much of him on the grass at home as we'd like to have done, but at least he's been on the track in the grass, so that's good.

“It is Andrew's dream (to win the Derby). He's only 54, so he'll keep trying and you never know.”

Christopher Wood, husband of Julie Wood, owner of Alderman (Stall 6)

“This is a field of dreams, isn't it? This is the sport of dreams, and if you can't dream, you shouldn't be in the game.

“It has been Julie's dream ever since she was a little child. The Derby was the race to win for so many of us. It is certainly for Julie, and it is a dream to win. The first dream is to get into the race. That we've achieved this year again, and we just keep dreaming.”

More to read on the Betfred Derby

• Horse-by-horse guide and Nic Doggett verdict
• Weekend View from Andrew Asquith
• Stamina is key according to Simon Holt
• What do pedigrees say and who will stay best?
• Timeform's Derby greats down the years
• Frankel holds the key to Epsom glory
• Egypt the each-way play according to Alex Hammond
• The "most thrilling 90 minutes in horseracing"?
• Aidan O'Brien's unshakeable faith in Pierre Bonnard
• Final field of 14 and Derby draw details