When I came out to the parade ring, I thought Luger looked in fantastic order, and nice and relaxed. It was only when we went out on to the track and he had to turn right and not left, that he was a bit unsettled. He was a bit unsure of what was happening because he hadn't turned that way to go to a race since his first start as a two-year-old. So I had him follow another horse down to the start and then I gave him a pretty long prelim, just to get all that nervous energy out of his legs.
That settled him down until he was getting near to the gates again and he got a bit toey but the handler kept him well back from the gates themselves and the longer he walked around, the more relaxed he felt. I took him up late and he was the last horse to go in and then bounced out really well and I followed Contentment across into the first turn.
That was where the pre-race plan was in trouble, then and there. Christophe Soumillon had come out running on Obliterator from an inside gate and he held Contentment off the fence and out of the lead and that left me sitting out three wide. It wasn't ideal but there was nowhere to go back and get in behind me, and the pace of the race was just quick enough that I thought it would be the wrong move to try to keep pushing forward.
I was hoping the leader would steady once he had established the lead and allow me to get around and park outside him but Soumillon kept going at that same tempo, where it would have been detrimental to my chances to press forward. In the back of my mind, though, I kept telling myself that I was on the best horse in the race and to try to keep him in his rhythm. And he relaxed beautifully for me even though he was out facing the breeze.
He relaxed so much that, when the pace did quicken about the 550m, Luger didn't immediately go with it. He was still waiting for a signal from me to start to take off.
He was still waiting when we straightened and Karis Teetan on Thunder Fantasy tried to come out underneath Luger at the top of the straight when there was a half a gap and Thunder Fantasy gave him a bump and that was the signal. Luger knew then that it was time to go so he accelerated and put himself in contention so I have to thank Karis for that.
And I think just waiting for that handful of seconds before he did give his full effort probably helped Luger to win the race because it left him with some energy to fight it out in the last 100m when the tough run was going to tell. But he was strong at the finish even though he had the most difficult run and it was his second run in four months and his first go at 2,000m.
I said it after I trialled him and I'd say it again now - he still feels raw, like there's a lot more to come.
But today he was the best horse in the Derby, simple as that.
As told to Alan Aitken
