Handicapper Not Especially Impressed With Pour Moi Derby Success

Even though he came with a devastating run to blitz past Treasure Beach and Carlton House in the dying strides of a particularly dramatic Investec Derby at Epsom on Saturday, BHA handicapper Phil Smith has awarded French star Pour Moi the lowest rating given to a Derby winner since the triumph of Sir Percy back in 2006, writes Elliot Slater.

Although Smith believes that there is most probably better to come from the winner and from the third, he has taken the view that the presence of lesser horses fairly close behind from sixth to ninth position holds the bare form down, and at this stage he feels he will allot Pour Moi a rating of 122, with Carlton House on 120. With the first five home covered by no more than two-and-a-half-lengths, there appears plenty of substance in Smith's opinion that they can't all be top notchers. Indeed, many horse racing betting experts had cast doubts on the quality of the field before the race started.

When Sir Percy won one of the most thrilling races ever for the Derby in a four-way photo, the assessment of the form proved spot on, and none of the principals went on to achieve anything out of the ordinary. Smith however feels that Pour Moi and Carlton House in particular still have more to offer and would like to think that he will be able to raise their respective ratings on the back of some high-class performances later on this term. He suggested that Carlton House would almost certainly prove to be much more effective on a flatter track.

Andre Fabre's Pour Moi is now as short as 5/1 joint favourite for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp in October together with the outstanding ex-Irish performer So You Think, but is set to have a mid-summer break before returning in September for the Prix Niel, one of the main trial races for the 'Arc' itself.