Kieren Fallon: “If Aidan O’Brien trained Best Solution, I’m convinced he’d be favourite”

Coral Racing Ambassador Kieren Fallon gives you the inside track on Godolphin’s Derby runners and reveals what it takes to win the big race

So much goes into making a Derby winner. To begin with, you need a well-balanced colt who definitely stays a mile and a half. Just as importantly, they need a good temperament. There’s the parade before the race and these big, gassy colts often want to get on with the job. Boil over at this stage and your race can be gone before you even get to the start. As a jockey you need a lot of confidence and you need to be able to relax. If you don’t relax then the horse isn’t going to relax and that’s not good for your chances around there, especially in the Derby.

Dubai Thunder’s a really interesting runner for us as well. He’s a big baby and this is a big step up for him, as he only made his debut a couple of weeks ago. Since then, he’s been for a day out at Chelmsford to give him a look around and get him travelling and away from the yard so it’s less of a shock to him at Epsom. His run at Newbury took nothing out of him, but the atmosphere at Epsom will be a new challenge. He was a bit gassy at Newbury, but he’s as good as gold at home I’m told, so hopefully he’ll handle it all.