They say nobody remembers second place. Last year's Oaks (G1) and Derby (G1) belonged to Tuesday and Desert Crown, whose names are forever etched in the history books as classic winners rather than Emily Upjohn and Westover. The Coronation Cup is not a classic, but what it does provide is a group 1 redemption opportunity over track and trip June 2 for the two hard-luck stories from those races.
In the case of Emily Upjohn, her misfortunes were pronounced as she was the moral Oaks winner. She stumbled upon leaving the gates and lost around four lengths at the start. It was to her credit she emerged with a short-head second to a filly who benefited from a dream split up the inside, having raced widest to make up the ground.
While Westover took the Derby bronze medal, and might have struggled to defeat top-class colt Desert Crown in any case, he shaped second best at worst. Traffic problems repeatedly deprived him of a clear run until the bird had flown.
That is not the only connection between Emily Upjohn and Westover. The pair finished tailed off as first and second favorite, respectively, for the King George (G1) at Ascot seven weeks later after both pulled too hard.
Freeness is a natural concern for Emily Upjohn following a 230-day break and racing in a small field. A fillip for Westover's supporters is the fact he has had a run, and a brilliant one, in the Sheema Classic (G1), albeit 69 days ago.
What Westover proved when running on for second behind Japanese megastar Equinox, a prime candidate for best middle-distance horse on the planet, was the fact he retains every portion of his 3-year-old ability.
Hurricane Lane performed below expectations in two starts at 4 and on his first start at 5, but he bounced back to something resembling his 3-year-old best in the Jockey Club Stakes (G2) at Newmarket last month. The upturn in fortunes can possibly be attributed to the addition of first-time cheekpieces, and the appendage is reapplied.
Like Emily Upjohn and Westover, Hurricane Lane is generally held up. That does not preclude him from making the running, as tactics are open to reassessment, as Ryan Moore demonstrated by setting the fractions in exemplary fashion aboard Luxembourg in the Tattersalls Gold Cup (G1) last weekend. The decision paid dividends as he clung on for a narrow success from Bay Bridge, and it is a possibility Moore elects to control matters on prominent racer Point Lonsdale here.
Arguably, Aidan O'Brien's standout training performance of the year came last weekend with Little Big Bear bouncing back from a no-show in the Two Thousand Guineas (G1) to re-establish himself as a top-class sprinter in the Sandy Lane. If O'Brien can coax a group 1 out of Point Lonsdale in a competitive Coronation Cup, that achievement might be eclipsed.
This talented brother to Broome missed his 3-year-old campaign and has notched a couple of successes in lesser company this term, latterly when racing lazily for much of the Huxley Stakes (G2) at Chester. He seems to keep a bit back for himself, but 1 1/2 miles promises to extract more from Point Lonsdale, as it did for Broome.
Westover Back for More at Epsom
Roll the clock back 12 months ago and Westover was a name on people's lips for the Derby, in which he was third to Desert Crown after a luckless passage.
Since then, he has confirmed himself a top-drawer colt by powering to victory in the Irish Derby (G1) and finishing second to Equinox. The son of Frankel was bred by owner Juddmonte and is trained by Ralph Beckett, who said: "He's in very good form. He worked well on the grass at the weekend over six furlongs and we're all very happy with him and with the place we are in.
"The Coronation Cup has always been everyone's first choice because he handled Epsom so well last year. I thought it was a terrific run in Dubai, especially as he'd had a difficult preparation. He hadn't settled there for the first few days and things only started to fall into place close to the race, but he ran superbly well."
Tune Into German Runner's Chance
Do not discount German raiders in big mile-and-a-half races even if their odds suggest otherwise. Torquator Tasso (72-1) and Danedream (20-1) taught us that in the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1), while the latter also captured the King George at 9-1—a race won by compatriot Novellist (IRE) not so long ago as well.
Danedream's trainer, Peter Schiergen, also struck in the Coronation Cup with Boreal in 2002 and is represented this time round by Tunnes, a half brother to Torquator Tasso.
He was an unchallenged top-level winner in the Grosser Preis von Bayern (G1) last year, but is the outsider of the field here. However, Schiergen believes him to be in the same class as Boreal and Danedream.
He said: "I'm very optimistic. He's taking on better horses now than at home, of course, but I think he's good enough. I think he has the same class as Boreal and Danedream. He's better on soft ground, but he acts on any going, and good ground will be fine for him."
