Aidan O'Brien's stranglehold on the betting for the Betfred Derby was loosened on Thursday when his two challengers for the richest trial for the Epsom Classic were both defeated.
Before the Al Basti Equiworld Dante Stakes, the 11-time Derby-winning trainer was responsible for five of the first six horses in the betting, headed by Benvenuto Cellini, Constitution River and Christmas Day, who with Action, was one of two stable runners in the York feature.
Christmas Day, the mount of Ryan Moore, was the 11-4 favourite for the Group 2 prize with stablemate Action a 4-1 chance, yet neither could handle the Andrew Balding-trained Item who extended his unbeaten record when scoring by two and three quarter lengths.
Arriving at the Knavesmire having won both starts as a two-year-old, the son of Frankel was sent off at 11-2 for his seasonal comeback in what is widely considered the premier trial for the Epsom Classic next month.
Ridden with supreme confidence by Colin Keane, the Juddmonte number one tracked long-time leader Action on the far side while much of the field drifted towards the stands rail. When asked to assert himself inside the final furlong, Item quickened a smart two-and-three-quarter-lengths clear of Action, with Christmas Day third.
The win delivered a second Classic contender for the owners in as many days following Legacy Link's Musidora victory 24 hours earlier. Item's Derby odds were slashed from 33-1 to 6-1 by William Hill, behind Benvenuto Cellini on 9-4 and Constitution River 5-1.
Juddmonte racing manager Barry Mahon said: "That was only his third lifetime start and his first this year. He does his work nicely at home, but he's not flashy and we were a little unsure where we were, but that was a good performance.
"We've won a trial so the obvious place to go is the Derby. Juddmonte buy and breed these horses to compete at the top table in the best races and the Epsom Derby is still one of the best races in the world.
"Colin said he felt like a horse who would get further so we'll talk to the owners, but hopefully they'll want to go to Epsom."
He added: "Some very good horses won the trials at Chester and Lingfield, but this horse has done nothing wrong, he's three from three and he keeps answering the questions. We came here today not knowing where we were going, but I thought that was a very good performance for his first run of the year."
