The world’s highest-rated racehorse Calandagan has been declared to run at Epsom on Saturday. He will take on five rivals in the Group 1 Coronation Cup, but only if the weather co-operates.
Calandagan met with a surprise defeat in the race 12 months ago. At that point in his career, he was remarkably still without a top level success. Five races later, he holds a higher rating than any other flat horse, having won every race in the meantime, all of them Group 1s.
The Coronation Cup will be his first run this season in Europe. He concedes race fitness to the doughty Jan Brueghel, who won at Chester in the Ormonde Stakes to warm up for his title defence. He and Ryan Moore repelled Calandagn 12 months ago.
That rematch itself is a mouthwatering one. However, the Coronation Cup also contains the 2025 Derby hero Lambourn. Altogether, the ingredients are there for a showstopping race, which offers a greater purse this year. It is also the first renewal to sit on the same card as the Derby.
“My horse is in form” – Graffard
Unsurprisingly, Francis-Henri Graffard cannot wait to unleash Calandagan back on European turf. The five-year-old is a gelding, so could feasibly race for many seasons yet given he does not possess stud value.
He also showed he retains his ability at five. He won the Dubai Sheema Classic at Meydan from miles back in the field, running down West Wind Blows. That performance, coupled with his achievements in 2025, leave Graffard eagerly awaiting Epsom.
“My horse is in form and he is demanding to go back to the races,” he said to the Racing Post. “He’s already won on soft ground and so in the normal run of things, he’ll be at the start. He is due to leave for Epsom tonight so I will speak again with the clerk of the course and then with Princess Zahra.”
There is little more for Calandagan to achieve. Graffard said after his horse’s Japan Cup triumph that: “I knew I was exposing Calandagan in a race that’s almost impossible to win. We were asking him to do something quite incredible after he had already proved he was the best, so I felt an enormous weight on my shoulders.”
As such, any further racing experience is purely for show. If anything, that could be the greatest danger for his rivals, as connections simply seek the pleasure of watching him win more races. His presence at Epsom on Derby day will only add to the revamped festival.