Founder & Editor · Last reviewed 2026-06-29
The 2026 edition has been run. Next: Irish Derby Festival 2027, Friday 25 to Sunday 27 June 2027.
Irish Derby FestivalLooking for the current Irish Derby Festival?
Our live guide has 2026+ racetimes, TV coverage and runners as they're confirmed.
See the Irish Derby Festival live hubOr the full Irish Derby Festival festival guide — dates, venue, ticketsSunday 28 June 2026, 16:35 BST. The Curragh. Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby, Group 1, 1m4f, 3yo c/g, EUR 1,250,000.
This has been run. What follows is kept as it was written beforehand, so any unconfirmed detail was unconfirmed at the time and was not revisited.
✅ Result: Benvenuto Cellini won. The 7/4 favourite Benvenuto Cellini (Ryan Moore, Aidan O'Brien) led home a Ballydoyle 1-2-3, beating stablemate Christmas Day by 1¾ lengths with Pierre Bonnard third. It was O'Brien's record 18th Irish Derby and redemption for a colt who had underperformed at Epsom, read the build-up in our Benvenuto Cellini v Item head-to-head. The pre-race preview is preserved below.
The 2026 Irish Derby is the year's second 3yo Classic Derby and the most-anticipated Curragh G1 of the early summer. Run over 1m4f -- the same trip as the Epsom Derby -- the race traditionally attracts the Epsom Derby winner returning for the 'Double Derby' bid.
Coolmore dominates the Irish Derby. Pattern: Aidan O'Brien has won the race 14 times since 2007 -- by far the dominant single-yard signal in flat racing's calendar. The 'Double Derby' has been pulled off 8 times in the last 30 years, most recently by Auguste Rodin (2023) for Aidan O'Brien.
The 2026 race is shaped by the Epsom Derby 2026 winner -- whoever wins on Saturday 6 June at Epsom heads to the Curragh as the form-line tested favourite. If Benvenuto Cellini wins Epsom, the Coolmore-named Irish Derby route is open.
Quick race details:
- Day & time: Saturday 27 June 2026, ~16:30 BST (off-time confirmed at 48-hour declarations Thursday 25 June)
- Venue: The Curragh, Co. Kildare
- Distance: 1 mile 4 furlongs
- Eligibility: 3yo colts and geldings
- Going: Forecast Good (early summer typical)
- Prize money: EUR 1,250,000 total -- one of the year's richest 3yo races
- Live TV: ITV Racing (UK) + RTÉ Sport (Ireland) + Racing TV
- 48-hour declarations: Thursday 25 June
Aidan O'Brien typically runs 4-5 in the Irish Derby with the Epsom Derby winner as the lead runner. Sequence pattern: O'Brien sends the Epsom winner to the Curragh 21 days later for the rematch + Double Derby bid.
This piece covers the named field expectation, the trends-clean profile, and the verdict. For the Epsom Derby 2026 tips and Epsom Derby Festival 2026 hub for the form-line context.
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The named field expectation
The Epsom Derby winner returns
Whoever wins the Epsom Derby 2026 on Saturday 6 June is the form-line tested Irish Derby favourite. Pattern: the Epsom winner has won the Irish Derby 8 times in the last 30 years. Most recent: Auguste Rodin (2023) for Aidan O'Brien.
If Benvenuto Cellini wins Epsom, his Irish Derby price compresses to 5/4 to 7/4F at the off. If a non-Coolmore horse wins Epsom, the Coolmore-trained second-string at Epsom typically routes to the Irish Derby instead, often at 3/1 to 9/2.
Aidan O'Brien's hand
Coolmore typically runs 4-5 in the Irish Derby with:
- The Epsom Derby winner (if Coolmore-trained)
- 1-2 lightly-raced Coolmore Galileo / Camelot colts who didn't run at Epsom
- 1-2 Coolmore second-strings from the Epsom Derby field
Pattern: Aidan O'Brien has won the Irish Derby 14 times since 2007 -- approximately 75% strike rate when he runs the named lead horse. The longshot from the Coolmore second-string at 14/1+ is the structural value play, similar to the Chester Cup result where Joseph O'Brien's longshot at 7/1 won.
Charlie Appleby
Charlie Appleby has won the Irish Derby once in the last 10 (Hurricane Lane 2021). Godolphin typically runs 1-2 with the Dante / Hampton Court trial form lines.
Joseph O'Brien
Joseph O'Brien typically runs 1-2 in the Irish Derby with the Curragh-based Camelot colts. His pattern is similar to his father's: the longshot from the same yard often outperforms the favourite of the same yard -- pattern matched at the Chester Cup last week.
Jim Bolger / Dermot Weld / Donnacha O'Brien
Jim Bolger has 3 Irish Derby wins (1998, 2009, 2011) -- the dominant Irish-trained non-Coolmore signal. Dermot Weld has won the race once in the last 10 (Harzand 2016 -- the Epsom + Irish double). Donnacha O'Brien is the rising Curragh-based trainer.
The pace-and-trip read
The Curragh's 1m4f is a stiffer trip than Epsom's 1m4f6y but with the same downhill camber. Pattern: Epsom Derby winners returning to the Curragh have a 50% strike rate -- the form line transfers but is not a guarantee.
The pace narrative: Coolmore typically deploys a pacemaker (often the longshot Coolmore second-string) to set an honest gallop -- the same tactical template used at the Chester Vase 2026 where Proposition pace-made for Benvenuto Cellini.
For the trends-clean profile see section 3.
Irish Derby trends -- last 10 winners
| Year | Winner | Trainer | Epsom Derby form | SP |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Lambourn | A O'Brien | Won Epsom Derby | 4/5 |
| 2024 | Los Angeles | A O'Brien | 4th Epsom | 4/1 |
| 2023 | Auguste Rodin | A O'Brien | Won Epsom Derby | 5/2F |
| 2022 | Westover | R Beckett | 3rd Epsom | 5/2F |
| 2021 | Hurricane Lane | C Appleby | 3rd Epsom | 6/4F |
| 2020 | Santiago | A O'Brien | (Galileo runner) | 5/2 |
| 2019 | Sovereign | A O'Brien | -- | 33/1 |
| 2018 | Latrobe | J O'Brien | -- | 14/1 |
| 2017 | Capri | A O'Brien | (3yo Camelot) | 6/1 |
| 2016 | Harzand | D Weld | Won Epsom | 6/4F |
[Sources: Wikipedia, OLBG; cross-checked.]
Key reads:
- Aidan O'Brien has 6 of the last 10 winners -- the dominant signal
- The 'Double Derby' (winning BOTH Epsom and Irish) has been pulled off 3 times in the last 10: Lambourn (2025, A O'Brien), Auguste Rodin (2023, A O'Brien), Harzand (2016, D Weld). Hurricane Lane 2021 was Epsom 3rd + Irish winner, not a Double Derby. Los Angeles 2024 was Epsom 4th + Irish winner, not a Double Derby
- 2 of last 10 winners were Coolmore second-strings at long odds (Sovereign 33/1 in 2019; Latrobe 14/1 in 2018) -- the structural longshot pattern
- 5/2 to 6/1 SP range has produced 6 winners in the last 10 -- the structural value zone
- Strict favourites win less than 50% (4/10) -- the Irish Derby is genuinely competitive
The 2026 trends-cleanest profile
| Trend | Looking for |
|---|---|
| Aidan O'Brien yard signal (6/10 winners) | A Coolmore-trained colt |
| Epsom Derby form line (5/10 winners) | A horse that ran at Epsom on 6 June |
| 3yo with G1 win or place this season | Listed-class+ form line |
| Recent run within 31 days | A 4-week prep run |
| Top-3 in betting market OR 14/1+ longshot | 5/2-6/1 OR 14/1+ value |
Final verdict TBD post-Epsom Derby on Saturday 6 June. The trends-clean pick will likely be the Epsom Derby winner OR a Coolmore second-string at 14/1+.
For the Tips section and the verdict, see section 4.
Tips and verdict
Win-only verdict
Win-only price likely 5/4 to 7/4F at the off -- the Epsom Derby winner returning. Win-only at 5/4-or-shorter is short value but the cleanest profile in flat racing's calendar (Coolmore + Frankel/Galileo + Epsom Derby form line + recent prep).
The Coolmore yard signal is so dominant at the Irish Derby that fading the favourite-yard typically loses long-term. Each-way pays better if the Epsom Derby second/third runs in the Irish Derby at 5/2 or 11/4.
Each-way pick: Coolmore second-string at 9/2 to 6/1
The structural each-way pick is the Coolmore-trained Epsom Derby 4th-or-5th. Pattern: Los Angeles (2024) was 4th at Epsom and won the Irish Derby at 4/1. The same yard's lightly-raced Galileo / Camelot / Wootton Bassett 3yo at 9/2 to 6/1 with a recent prep is the format-aligned play.
Win-only longshot: Coolmore second-string at 14/1+
2 of the last 10 Irish Derby winners were Coolmore second-strings at 14/1+ (Sovereign 33/1 in 2019, Latrobe 14/1 in 2018). The longshot from the favourite yard at the right form-line shape is the structural surprise pattern.
Watch for an Aidan O'Brien stable companion at the 48-hour declarations stage on Thursday 25 June.
What could derail the favourite
- Epsom Derby winner not declared at the Curragh -- pattern: 2 of last 10 Epsom Derby winners chose the King George at Ascot over the Irish Derby. If 2026's Epsom winner is owned by a non-Coolmore syndicate, the Irish Derby route is uncertain.
- A Coolmore second-string surge -- if Coolmore is 3-handed and the longshot from the same yard wins, the 4/5 favourite collapses
- Soft or heavy ground -- the Curragh can be variable; typical "very soft" / heavy disrupts Coolmore's Galileo / Camelot fast-ground form
The 'Double Derby' angle
The Double Derby is the year's biggest single-form-line achievement. Pattern: 3 of last 10 Epsom Derby winners have completed the double at the Curragh, Lambourn (2025), Auguste Rodin (2023), Harzand (2016).
A Benvenuto Cellini Double Derby win would be the structural editorial story of the entire 2026 flat season.
Calculate your each-way return: Open the Each-Way Calculator →
Where to bet
Most major UK bookmakers carry the Irish Derby in their daily Specials and ante-post markets. Best Odds Guaranteed is available on day-of-race at William Hill and Betfred.
For our bookmaker reviews see the bookmakers hub.
Responsible betting reminder: the Irish Derby is high-class Group 1 Classic racing. Use small stakes, each-way bets in big fields, and stop when you've reached your budget. Free help: BeGambleAware.org.
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