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Roger Varian: Derby defeat for King Of Steel 'a stronger disappointment' than Kingston Hill in 2014
Finishing runner-up in the Derby a second time was harder to take than the first experience, according to Roger Varian, who reflected with mixed emotions on King Of Steel's second to Auguste Rodin in the Epsom Classic.
Varian watched Kingston Hill enter the final two furlongs of the Derby in the lead back in 2014, only for the Aidan O'Brien-trained Australia to catch him late in the race and it was a similar story on Saturday, as O'Brien's Auguste Rodin denied Varian a first Derby success when overhauling King Of Steel close home.
While Varian was not ruling out an Irish Derby rematch with Auguste Rodin at the Curragh, with connections of Derby runners Sprewell and Arrest also striking a similar tone yesterday, it was the Newmarket trainer's sense of disappointment that was most palpable.
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Published on inDerby festival
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