2004 Epsom Derby
# 2004 Epsom Derby

The 2004 Epsom Derby was a horse race that took place at Epsom Downs on Saturday 5 June 2004. It was the 225th running of the Derby, won by the pre-race joint favourite North Light. The winner was ridden by Kieren Fallon and trained by Sir Michael Stoute. The other joint favourite Snow Ridge finished seventh.

## Race details

* Sponsor: Vodafone
* Winner's prize money: £788,220
* Going: Good
* Number of runners: 14
* Winner's time: 2m 33.72s

## Full result

| | * | Horse | Jockey | Trainer $^†$ | SP |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | | North Light | Kieren Fallon | Sir Michael Stoute | 7/2 jf |
| 2 | 1½ | Rule of Law | Kerrin McEvoy | Saeed bin Suroor | 20/1 |
| 3 | hd | Let the Lion Roar | Michael Kinane | John Dunlop | 14/1 |
| 4 | hd | Percussionist | Kevin Darley | John Gosden | 7/1 |
| 5 | 3 | Salford City | Johnny Murtagh | David Elsworth | 8/1 |
| 6 | 1½ | American Post | Richard Hughes | Criquette Head-Maarek (FR) | 13/2 |
| 7 | 1¾ | Snow Ridge | Frankie Dettori | Saeed bin Suroor | 7/2 jf |
| 8 | hd | Hazyview | Eddie Ahern | Neville Callaghan | 40/1 |
| 9 | 1½ | Pukka | Darryll Holland | Luca Cumani | 10/1 |
| 10 | 2½ | Gatwick | Richard Quinn | Mick Channon | 16/1 |
| 11 | nk | Massif Centrale | Dane O'Neill | David Elsworth | 100/1 |
| 12 | 19 | Coming Again | Michael Hills | Barry Hills | 80/1 |
| 13 | 1¼ | Elshadi | Martin Dwyer | Marcus Tregoning | 25/1 |
| 14 | 7 | Meath | Jamie Spencer | Aidan O'Brien (IRE) | 16/1 |

* The distances between the horses are shown in lengths or shorter. hd = head; nk = neck. † Trainers are based in Great Britain unless indicated.

## Winner's details

Further details of the winner, North Light:

* Foaled: 1 March 2001 in Ireland
* Sire: Danehill; Dam: Sought Out (Rainbow Quest)
* Owner: Ballymacoll Stud
* Breeder: Ballymacoll Stud Farm Ltd
* Rating in 2004 World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings: 122

## Form analysis

### Two-year-old races

Notable runs by the future Derby participants as two-year-olds in 2003.

* Rule of Law – 1st Acomb Stakes, 3rd Royal Lodge Stakes
* Let the Lion Roar – 2nd Haynes, Hanson and Clark Stakes
* American Post – 1st Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère, 1st Racing Post Trophy
* Snow Ridge – 1st Royal Lodge Stakes, 9th Dewhurst Stakes
* Elshadi – 1st Haynes, Hanson and Clark Stakes, 4th Autumn Stakes

### The road to Epsom

Early-season appearances in 2004 and trial races prior to running in the Derby.

* North Light – 1st Dante Stakes
* Rule of Law – 2nd Dante Stakes
* Let the Lion Roar – 3rd Dante Stakes
* Percussionist – 1st Lingfield Derby Trial
* Salford City – 1st Greenham Stakes, 6th 2,000 Guineas
* American Post – 1st Prix Omnium II, 1st Prix de Fontainebleau, 1st Poule d'Essai des Poulains
* Snow Ridge – 2nd 2,000 Guineas
* Hazyview – 1st Newmarket Stakes, 2nd Lingfield Derby Trial, 1st Fairway Stakes
* Gatwick – 1st Haydock Silver Bowl
* Meath – 2nd Leopardstown 2,000 Guineas Trial Stakes, 2nd Amethyst Stakes, 1st Gallinule Stakes

### Subsequent Group 1 wins

Group 1 / Grade I victories after running in the Derby.

* Rule of Law – St. Leger (2004)

## Subsequent breeding careers

Leading progeny of participants in the 2004 Epsom Derby.

### Sires of Classic winners

North Light (1st)

* Arctic Cosmos - 1st St Leger Stakes (2010)
* Celtic New Year - 2nd Charles Whittingham Memorial Handicap (2011)

### Sires of Group/Grade One winners

American Post (6th)

* Robin Of Navan - 1st Critérium de Saint-Cloud (2015)
* Ana Americana - 3rd Prix Saint-Alary (2009)
* Liliside - 1st(disqualified) Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (2010) dam of Lys Gracieux (Japanese Horse of the Year 2019)
* Got Away - 1st Charnwood Forest Mares' Chase (2018)
