[citation needed] Rocket Spade became the second consecutive son of champion sire Fastnet Rock to win the Derby, following on from Sherwood Forest in 2020.
[4] Rocket Spade had shown promise in the spring but had been slightly off the very best three-year-olds, finishing fourth in the Group 2 Sarten Memorial and fifth in the New Zealand 2000 Guineas.
Rocket Spade had dropped back to last, but jockey Craig Grylls was happy to bide his time and stick to the inside part of the track.
Grylls drove him through that opening and he quickly surged into contention, with Milford and Frontman joining him in a three-way battle to the finish.
Rocket Spade made amends for Hermitage and the O'Sullivan/Scott team, who had finished fourth a year earlier with the Derby favourite Dragon Leap.