American Colt Greenwich Village Among Entries for 2026 Betfred Derby
3 minutes Trained in the United States by Bob Baffert, Greenwich Village is a son of Quality Road and has already built an eye-catching profile, winning three of his four career starts.
The 2026 Betfred Derby could feature a rare transatlantic challenger, with American colt Greenwich Village included among the 88 horses entered for the premier Classic at Epsom Downs.
Trained in the United States by Bob Baffert, Greenwich Village is a son of Quality Road and has already built an eye-catching profile, winning three of his four career starts. He was last seen on Sunday when landing the Pasadena Stakes over a mile on turf at Santa Anita, a performance that underlined both his versatility and upward trajectory.
Should he take his chance, Greenwich Village would become the first US-trained runner in the Derby for more than three decades. The last was Wolf Prince, trained by Michael Dickinson, who finished eighth behind Commander In Chief at 40/1 back in 1993.
Tom Ryan, representing joint-owners SF Racing, described the entry as both unexpected and enticing.
“We are incredibly grateful to The Jockey Club for extending an invitation to the Betfred Derby for Greenwich Village,” he said.
“It was a wonderful and unexpected surprise for all of us, and something we don’t take lightly. It’s a very intriguing opportunity, and we’ll be giving it serious thought as we map out his path from the winter into the spring.
“We’ve loved seeing how he’s progressed, stretching out from six and a half furlongs to a mile on the turf, and he keeps finding and finishing through adversity, which is what you want to see from a developing three-year-old.
“He’s a big, powerful colt — and he’s bred to keep moving forward as distances increase. The Derby distance is the great unknown.
“We will be guided by Bob Baffert when it comes to making a decision. When we originally purchased him, we had the Kentucky Derby in mind. It would be quite a pivot if he ended up in Epsom Downs.”
The international flavour of the entries is further boosted by two Japanese-trained contenders, Akkan and Choreo Sequence. The latter, trained by Yuta Sato, impressed when winning on debut in Tokyo in December before finishing a close fourth in the Group Three Kisaragi Sho over nine furlongs at Kyoto earlier this month.
Sato spoke warmly of the race’s significance: “The Derby, with its near 250-year history, is a truly magnificent race that I have long admired. Although we are still at the consideration stage, the owner (Hiroyuki Kawakatsu) has entrusted us with a horse of tremendous potential, and for that reason we have decided to enter him in the Derby at Epsom Downs.
“Choreo Sequence’s dam line traces back to Germany, and his pedigree includes the names of outstanding sires such as Sadler’s Wells and Monsun, both produced by Europe’s great horsemen. It is a great honour to be able to include the Derby as an option for such a well-bred and promising horse.”
While no Japanese-trained runner has yet taken part in the Derby, there is already a strong modern link: the 2023 winner Auguste Rodin was sired by Japanese stallion Deep Impact.
The 247th running of the Betfred Derby takes place on Saturday 6 June, with a record total prize fund of £2 million — and, potentially, one of the most internationally diverse fields in the race’s long and storied history.
