The renowned tipster provides a detailed analysis of Britain's richest horse races and has given his selections to finish first, second and third17:00, 05 Jun 2026BENVENUTO CELLINI is a worthy favourite to give Aidan O’Brien a record-extending 12th Betfred Derby (4.00) triumph at Epsom this afternoon.‌O’Brien’s Ballydoyle stable in Co Tipperary has become the logical starting point when seeking the winner of the world’s greatest Classic - the last three Derby heroes have all been trained there. And Benvenuto Cellini, the choice of Ryan Moore from a quartet of O’Brien runners, completed by Pierre Bonnard , Action and Christmas Day , has all the raw materials to continue the trend.‌The promise was there from the very start. Although my selection ran second to stablemate Dorset at the Curragh last June when making his racecourse debut, he went one better in handsome style at Killarney next time before registering a five-length success in the Group 2 Champions Juvenile Stakes at Leopardstown in September.‌Heavy ground was almost certainly to blame when Frankel’s son Benvenuto Cellini finished third behind Ballydoyle duo Hawk Mountain and Action in the top-level William Hill Futurity Trophy at Doncaster on his final start as a two-year-old.But his victory in Chester’s Group 3 Cheshire Vase after 193 days off during the winter should prove the perfect launchpad for Derby glory.When a horse starts at 2-9 for a race - those odds equate to near 82-per-cent win probability - it’s usually hard to get carried away. But, in beating Proposition by four and a quarter lengths, Benvenuto Cellini showed key attributes that will serve him well as he takes on the most demanding assignment of his career.‌As Proposition, another O’Brien trainee, cut out the running, Moore was happy to sit third of the five runners. When Mr Colonel, who had chased the pacemaker, began to feel the heat on the home turn, Moore sent his mount in pursuit of Proposition.In front approaching the furlong marker, Benvenuto Cellini surged clear in the fashion of a strong stayer.‌Some sort to crab the performance, describing the chestnut as “having a touch of the Lambourns” - a jibe that Benvenuto Cellini is a resolute galloper rather than a horse with push-button acceleration.But that ignores the fact that Lambourn followed his Chester Vase score in 2025 with a three-and-three-quarter-length supremacy at Epsom.Article continues belowThe Ballydoyle team has no equal when it comes to tailoring races to its horses’ strengths, and the 2026 Derby will present a test of staying power - a test that Benvenuto Cellini is expected to pass with flying colours.Another who boasts stamina as his forte is Maltese Cross . William Haggas’s son of 2009 Derby winner Sea The Stars has an admirable attitude when it comes to combat - as he showed when holding Bay Of Brilliance by a neck for the Listed Lingfield Derby Trial four weeks ago.He’s the choice to claim the silver medal, with James J Braddock fighting it out with Ancient Egypt and the unbeaten Item for the final place on the podium.