Irish Derby: Date, past winners, latest odds & more

The Irish Derby is one of the most prestigious Group 1 races on the Irish racing calendar and is open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies.

Contested over a distance of 1m4f at the Curragh, the Irish Derby is the equivalent of the Epsom Derby held in the UK and is traditionally staged three weeks after that race.

As one of the Irish Classic races it always attracts a high-quality field from home and abroad and a total of 19 horses have completed the English-Irish Derby double, the most recent being the Aidan O'Brien-trained Auguste Rodin in 2023.

Irish Derby date

The Irish Derby is traditionally held three weeks after the Epsom Derby, which usually means it falls in either late June or early July on the second day of the annual Irish Derby Festival meeting.

The 2025 renewal of the race is scheduled to take place at 15:25 on Sunday 29th June.

Irish Derby venue

Like all the Irish Classics, the Irish Derby is staged at the iconic Curragh Racecourse in County Kildare.

The modern Irish Derby was first run at the venue in 1866 and the 2024 edition will be the 159th staging of the prestigious Group 1 contest.

Irish derby history

The Irish Derby is a stand-out event in the Flat season calendar and one of the key three-year-old races in the European pattern.

The earliest version of the Irish Derby was an event called the O'Darby Stakes, first established in 1817.

The race as we know it now is around since 1962, when its prize money was substantially increased and it became a truly international event.

Irish Derby most successful trainer

It is no surprise to see the name of Aidan O'Brien at the top of the list when it comes to the most successful trainer in Irish Derby history.

The Ballydoyle handler has won the race a record 15 times, with the first of those successes coming via Desert King in 1997.

Since then, Galileo (2001), High Chaparral (2002), Dylan Thomas (2006), Soldier of Fortune (2007), Frozen Fire (2008), Fame and Glory (2009), Cape Blanco (2010), Treasure Beach (2011), Camelot (2012), Australia (2014), Capri (2017), Sovereign (2019) and Santiago (2020) have all won the race for O'Brien, as has Auguste Rodin, who was his most recent scorer in 2023.

Irish Derby most successful jockey

Perhaps surprisingly it is not an O'Brien-associated jockey who has claimed the most Irish Derby wins, with those successes having been split amongst the likes of Joseph O'Brien, Johnny Murtagh and Seamie Heffernan.

Instead, it is Morny Wing who holds the accolade for the most successes, as he claimed six wins between 1921 and 1946.

Irish Derby famous winners

The fastest ever time recorded by an Irish Derby winner was set by St Jovite, who clocked a time of 2:25.60 in 1992 under the guide of jockey Christy Roche and trainer Jim Bolger.

The Epsom-Curragh double has been completed in recent times by Harzand (2016) and Auguste Rodin (2023), bringing to 19 the total number of horses to win the English and Irish versions.

All the way back in 1880 William Brophy completed a unique double by owning the winner of both the Irish Derby with King of the Bees and the Irish Grand National with Controller.