‘He is just unbelievable ... and is not like any other horse I have ridden’

“I heard Lester say it (the St Leger) is nearly two miles. You are asking a Guineas winner to run two miles,” explained O’Brien senior.

“You are pushing Camelot way out of his comfort zone. They almost have to be Ascot Gold Cup horses to get that trip. It’s when you go beyond a mile and a half that you need the stamina to kick in. We run a lot of the horses in the Gold Cup over two and a half miles before Yates came along and a lot of them didn’t come back from the experience. These extremes can break your heart.

“Camelot’s body is built more like a miler in that he is round and strong as opposed to angular and lean. That is a little thing that would be in your mind.

“But Joseph knows Camelot better than anybody and he will go out there and do his own thing. I would imagine they would go a good, even gallop in the Leger. The old adage was class outs but I don’t know – this is a big test.”

Tactics will play an important part – it is almost certain that O’Brien junior will attempt to play a waiting game in order to help relax Camelot before being asked to take dead aim at his eight rivals, who include Main Sequence and Thought Worthy, second and fourth respectively in the Epsom Derby.

Do not be worried if Camelot is nearer last than first as the field turn into the long, galloping home straight. That will be the plan. And do not be put off by the teenage rider’s apparent inexperience – O’Brien junior has earned the right to be in the saddle, probably more so than many of the big-name jockeys employed by Ballydoyle over the years.

It is to the young jockey’s advantage that his riding education has taken place at the intensely private Ballydoyle and out of the public limelight.

As a youngster, he would be seen every Saturday walking a racecourse with his father, listening to tactics and observing what it takes to be a winner.

More comfortable with the media than his father, O’Brien junior offered this insight into his upbringing: “Dad always said never let school interfere with your education.”

It was a pointed reference to a desire to be a jockey, though his six foot frame – he towered over some members of the gathered media – will limit the duration of his Flat career and explains why he rarely sweats down to less than nine stone.

Yet, while his father was nervous, there was a quiet confidence about O’Brien junior – the polish glistening off his black riding boots that were tucked under his jeans.

“He’s very special ... he knows he’s one of the very best. He knows,” said the jockey, who added that St Leger success for Camelot will eclipse his Breeders’ Cup victory at Kentucky, USA, last autumn on the talented 
St Nicholas Abbey.

“After the Derby, he stood and pricked his ears at the cameras. Some horses would be upset. He stood, quiet as a lamb. He loves the attention.

“He is a jockey’s dream to ride as everything comes naturally to him. You let him come alive in your hands and he is actually very easy to ride. He is just unbelievable and is not like any other horse I have ever ridden.

“I have been riding since ever I can remember. The Triple Crown would be a dream come true. I have seen the videos of Nijinsky and Lester Piggott and if Camelot could emulate that it would be unbelievable. The St Leger will be the toughest test. A mile and six. It’s an extra two furlongs. It doesn’t sound much, but it is.”

Horse, trainer and jockey will only fly into Doncaster this morning – O’Brien senior prefers his horses to travel on the day of the race in case they become upset by a night in a strange stable. It will afford the trainer the chance to finalise riding plans with his son before they walk the course, though O’Brien senior appeared unaware that his son would leave his winning run in the 2000 Guineas so late. Yet the big-race jockey appears oblivious to the pressure ahead of today.

“If you get too nervous, you let nerves get better of you and you don’t last too long,” he explained.

If only winning the Triple Crown and St Leger was so simple.