Should 2,000 Guineas hero Churchill tackle the Epsom Classic?

YES
Richard Forristal, Ireland editor

History suggests it is more unlikely than likely that he will as King Of Kings and Camelot are the only two of Aidan O'Brien's previous seven 2,000 Guineas winners to line up in the premier Classic at Epsom.

However, for Coolmore it ultimately comes down to the individual, and in Churchill they have a horse with which they can be bold.

He settles well and has a good temperament, and to these eyes his pedigree suggests there is a decent chance that he will get 12 furlongs. He certainly doesn't look a one-dimensional miler in the mould of Rock Of Gibraltar, George Washington or Gleneagles.

In a utopian world of racing ideals, the 2,000 Guineas victor would always tackle the winners of established trials like the Derrinstown, the Dante and the Chester Vase at Epsom. We are still in the dark as to what those sort of races will throw up, but it would take something special to trump Churchill at the head of the Derby betting.

Although Hawk Wing was beaten at Newmarket, his gruelling defeat to an embryonic Derby type in High Chaparral is the quintessential illustration of the potential cost of such an encounter. On the flip side, Sea The Stars ensured his glorious legacy and did wonders for racing by conquering Fame And Glory at Epsom.

The Derby is the most thorough test of a horse and Coolmore know it. Moreover, they need to find a individual with the complete profile both in terms of pedigree and on-track exploits to fill the void that will inevitably be left by Churchill's aging sire Galileo.

Churchill could be the heir to the throne, but he needs to be given the opportunity to fulfil that destiny.

NO
Paul Kealy, betting editor

There are those who will tell you a Guineas winner should run in the Investec Derby whatever its pedigree and while I don't necessarily subscribe to that view, it would seem a bit perverse for him not to run.

He is, after all, by a Derby winner in Galileo who has himself sired three Derby winners and two Oaks winners, not to mention all the other world-class middle distance scorers he has produced.

The problem is obviously the dam's side, with Meow a 5f sprinter out of a 5f sprinter in Airwave (won a Group 2 at a mile as a five-year-old, but a poor one) and that has to raise serious doubts.

The tactically run 2,000 Guineas was a test of speed rather than stamina, and while Churchill just about settled in the early stages, he did look as though he could have done with them going a bit faster.

That's the worry when it comes to the Derby at Epsom as the first, uphill part of the race is the slowest. I remember when most of us thought the Ballydoyle battalions would attempt to make the 2013 Derby a test of stamina for doubtful stayer Dawn Approach, but instead they made sure the pace was very steady and let him beat himself.

A similar scenario could unfold with Churchill, who is probably always going to be best at 1m, maybe 1m2f at a push.

And surely a St James's Palace rematch with Barney Roy, who hated Newmarket, and Al Wukair, who was given miles too much to do, would be at least as mouthwatering.

If he were mine he'd go to Ascot.

YES
Martin Stevens, senior bloodstock journalist

Churchill's pedigree represents a blend of Classic stamina and raw speed. His sire, Galileo, won the Derby and has supplied three winners of the race in New Approach, Ruler Of The World and Australia. His dam, Meow, only ever raced over five furlongs at two, including when second in the Queen Mary Stakes, and she is out of the ace sprinter Airwave. It is a pedigree full of five-furlong specialists.

Normally, all that speed in the maternal family would put you off a Derby challenge. But Galileo has already clicked with sprinting mares to produce Classic winners over 12 furlongs - for proof look no further than Saturday's impressive Jockey Club Stakes winner Seventh Heaven, successful in last year's Irish Oaks and a half-sister to Middle Park Stakes winner Crusade out of a Grade 3 winner over six furlongs. Irish Derby hero Cape Blanco is another example: by Galileo out of a mare who excelled over the minimum trip.

Churchill could no doubt dominate the mile division, but wouldn't it be fun to find out whether he could join the likes of Sir Ivor, Nijinsky, Nashwan, Sea The Stars and Camelot in the pantheon of greats who have won both the 2,000 Guineas and Derby?

Regardless of what trip he was engineered to appreciate, he has clearly inherited a sound mind and will to win. And even if he were to fail to stay at Epsom and revert to shorter distances, his stud appeal would not be significantly diminished.

Qipco 2,000 Guineas result and analysis