Legacy Link impresses in Epsom gallop, boosts Oaks hopes

Legacy Link took a real step toward Epsom credibility when she handled the course’s bends, camber and downhill in one smooth official gallop, the kind of test that tells you far more than a routine workout. John Gosden said he was “very happy” with the filly after she completed the morning exercise, and he called the move “perfect”, a strong signal that the Betfred Oaks trip looks within reach.

This was not a casual spin. Legacy Link, trained by John and Thady Gosden, went to the top of the old mile-and-110-yards start, came down the hill at half speed, got on the correct lead and then picked up well in the straight. That sequence matters at Epsom, where balance on the downhill run and the ability to switch gears into Tattenham Corner often separate the genuine Classic filly from the one who merely looks useful on paper.

The form gives the workout even more weight. Legacy Link won the Group 3 Musidora Stakes at York by three-quarters of a length from Felicitas, then ran fourth in the Fillies’ Mile at Newmarket last autumn. She is the first foal out of Chiasma, the Galileo mare Juddmonte describes as a full sister to Frankel and Noble Mission, so the pedigree says the mile and a half should be there if the filly can translate that class into Epsom execution.

Colin Keane, her retained rider and a six-time Irish champion jockey, was back aboard and left with the same impression as the trainer. Gosden has already won the Oaks with Taghrooda, Enable and Anapurna, and he knows better than most that Epsom demands a rehearsal. He even pointed back to Vincent O’Brien’s advice from 1977, when he came with The Minstrel, Valinsky and Be My Guest, that cantering the downhill is a useful lesson before a Derby or Oaks.

The timing is right as well. The Betfred Oaks is on Friday, June 5, 2026, with the Betfred Derby following on Saturday, June 6, and every official gallop now carries extra market weight. That was true too for Amo Racing’s Derby hope Ancient Egypt, who worked in the same session and looked a serious Epsom player after coming down the hill nicely, switching leads into Tattenham Corner without being asked and finishing with Charlie Johnston calling him A1. Bought for 1.1 million guineas at Tattersalls Book One, he has already won his first two juvenile starts and returned to form in the Newmarket Stakes, giving the same morning a clear classic ripple effect on both sides of the card.