The Irish Derby didn’t just crown a winner at the Curragh on Sunday—it crowned a warrior. Lambourn, the commanding Epsom Derby hero, dug deep and delivered when it mattered most, fending off a late surge from his stablemate Serious Contender to secure a hard-fought victory and complete the historic English-Irish Derby double.

The early script was set by British invader Sir Dinadan, who took the field of ten through the opening stages. But that lead was short-lived. It wasn’t long before Ryan Moore, aboard the odds-on Lambourn, made his intentions crystal clear—this wasn’t going to be a stroll. This was going to be a war of attrition.

They blazed through the opening two furlongs at a furious 39 miles per hour, a gallop that stripped the race of any shelter for the faint-hearted. Moore wasn’t waiting to see who stayed the trip—he was daring the others to keep up.

At the halfway mark, Moore began to wind up the gears. By the time the field straightened for home, Lambourn had swept to the front, asserting dominance just as Sir Dinadan began to fold.

But the race was far from over.

As Lambourn ground toward the finish, Gavin Ryan brought Serious Contender with a bold run down the outside. The son of Australia—just like Lambourn—was flying late, threatening to snatch the prize from his better-fancied barnmate.

And then, Lambourn saw him.

The moment he caught Serious Contender in the corner of his eye, Lambourn kicked again. With grinding determination, he held his rival at bay, inching ahead to win by just under a length. In doing so, he followed in his sire Australia’s footsteps by capturing both the English and Irish Derbies.

“He was having a laugh with me,” Ryan Moore said with a half-smile. “He was only doing the minimum—just what he could get away with. Aidan had him on fire for this. He stays well, he’s straightforward. He keeps improving, and he’s consistent in the big races. That’s what Aidan does—he gets them to deliver when it counts.”

Moore admitted it wasn’t the flashiest performance. “He hasn’t done a huge amount there. It was hard to keep him focused on the outside of the leader. It was never going to be pretty, but he got the job done.”

And in a line that summed up Lambourn’s poise under pressure: “He always felt like he was in control. It might not have looked like it, but he was.”