Delacroix, son of Tepin, makes furious late run to win Eclipse

Delacroix, a son of fan favorite and Hall of Fame inductee Tepin, rallied in the final furlong to nab favored Ombudsman in the Group 1 Eclipse Stakes on Saturday at Sandown.

In the early stages Sosie dictated terms while hounded by Hotazhell. However, they were never allowed to get too far away from the rest of the six-horse field. Ombudsman, the 4-5 favorite in the American pari-mutuel pool, made a keen early move, improving to attend in close range of Sosie and Hotazhell.

Delacroix, just behind the leading flight early, gradually drifted back through the field. By the time the field hit the far turn, he had been shuffled to the back flight, inside of stablemate Camille Pissarro.

Near the quarter-mile mark, Ombudsman descended three wide, taking the lead over Sosie. Camille Pissarro, rallying from the last flight, loomed a danger. However, that danger proved only brief, and Ombudsman had his measure.

Into the final furlong, Ombudsman held a narrow lead. Sosie started to fade down the fence. Camille Pissarro began to flatten as well.

But, Ombudsman was not home free. Boxed behind foes earlier in the stretch run, Delacroix had begun to lift under jockey Ryan Moore. Flashing a sharp turn of foot, Delacroix finished furiously to get up by a neck over Ombudsman.

Ruling Court chased on for third, crossing the wire a short head in front of Camille Pissarro. Hotazhell and Sosie completed the order of finish.

Delacroix finished the 1 1/4 miles over good to firm ground in 2:05.92. He paid $9.10 to win in the pari-mutuel pool.

Delacroix is a 3-year-old son of Dubawi out of 2015 Breeders' Cup Mile winner Tepin. He is trained by Aidan O'Brien, who has won the race nine times, dating back to Giant's Causeway in 2000. He has won four of the last five editions of the Eclipse with St. Mark's Basilica (2021), Paddington (2023), City of Troy (2024) and Delacroix.

"Ryan worked it all out and unbelievable credit to him," O'Brien said to ITV Racing. "It was an incredible ride as he had to change his plan four times. Ryan said to me during the week that he's a very fast horse and wouldn't be surprised if he's a miler."

"It wasn't the first, second or third plan, as no one really wanted to make it," Moore said of his trip in an interview with ITV Racing. "William (Buick, riding Ombudsman) got first run on me, but he's a very good horse with a mighty turn of foot. They went steady for this class of horse, but his turn of foot made the difference."

The Eclipse was Delacroix's first win at the Group 1 level. However, he came close last year in the Futurity Trophy (G1) at Doncaster, where Hotazhell nipped him by a nose in the final strides. Delacroix came in off of a well-beaten ninth behind stablemate Lambourn as the favorite in the Derby (G1) at Epsom in his most recent start on June 7. However, he won a pair of group-level races at Leopardstown in Ireland by daylight in his two other starts this year, the Ballysax (G3) and the Derby Trial (G3).