Reported clash with King Charles's coronation could lead to new date for Derby

The Derby could be forced from its scheduled date after reports suggested King Charles's coronation could be staged on the same day next summer.

There has been unconfirmed speculation in two media outlets that the king will be crowned on Saturday, June 3, which is the scheduled date for both the Derby and the FA Cup Final.

Neither the Jockey Club nor the BHA would comment on any potential plans while the coronation's place in the calendar is merely the subject of speculation. When asked about the media reports, Buckingham Palace stressed no date had been confirmed.

Were the two events to be held on the same day, a rescheduling of the Derby is likely to be considered, leading one prominent TV pundit to suggest Britain's richest race should be run as part of a Breeders' Cup-style spectacular.

Racing TV's Steve Mellish said: "I'd be delighted if it wasn't on a Saturday, not competing with other events. Why not make it a one-day card on the Friday run in a Breeders' Cup style, perhaps eight or ten races starting in mid-afternoon and going on to early evening?

"The last four races would be a really valuable mile-and-a-half handicap, the Coronation Cup, the Oaks and then end with a bang with the Derby. That would be a really exciting day building up to the main event.

"It's not far outside London so people could get there to see some really high-quality racing and I'm sure you could do a deal to get it on ITV."

Mellish is a long-standing critic of the Derby's switch from a Wednesday to a Saturday in 1995 and added: "I love the Derby and I'm still fascinated by it but I don't think it's been a success to have it on a Saturday and it's become less important to the sporting public.

Lammtarra (green) won the first Saturday Derby in 1995Credit: Mark Cranham (racingpost.com/photos)

"It's just become one of a number of different sports on – next year it's due to be Cup Final day. In newspapers and on the BBC it's the third or fourth sporting event mentioned and that's what bothers me.

"I can understand the logic of saying you've got to have your major events when people want to go but racing struggles for publicity at the best of times.

"The reason it worked on a Wednesday was that it was a special event – like the Melbourne Cup on a Tuesday. They haven't made that mistake. You want as much publicity as possible on the day for our biggest race."

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