Rossa Ryan believes there's a lot more to come from last week's Dante Stakes winner Pride Of Arras.
Pride Of Arras was having just his second career start at York having won a Sandown maiden in August of 2024 but came home strongly to win the Group 2 by a length and a quarter with 2000 Guineas fifth Wimbledon Hawkeye another length and three quarters away in third.
Trainer Ralph Beckett was cautiously optimistic in his appraisal but believes that Pride Of Arras will improve for his reappearance and jockey Rossa Ryan agrees, telling Racing TV's Luck On Sunday that they've only just 'scratched the surface' with the colt.
"You need a horse to travel to be able to cope with the place [Epsom] and I don't see this lad as being a horse that won't; he's got a very good centre of gravity, very well balanced," he said.
"I think a lot of people forgot how well he did things first time up.
"I know he was thrown straight into the deep end in the Dante but if you watch him when he won first time [replay below], he hit a ridge three out at Sandown, it took him five strides to adjust himself and by the furlong pole he had taken four lengths out of the field - it was like he'd just jumped in.
"I think the most fascinating thing about him is that he only does what we ask of him at home, we don't ask him to do anymore. Everything else after that we're finding out on the racetrack.
"It's a very, very exciting position to be in, especially with a horse like this, because I still don't think we've scratched the surface of what could be to come."
Pride Of Arras is the 4/1 third favourite for the Derby on Saturday June 7 with Sky Bet.
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