It was Buick and trainer Charlie Appleby’s first win in a race at the Epsom track outside London. Masar belonged to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum’s Godolphin stable and won ahead of Dee Ex Bee and with Roaring Lion in third.

This was Buic’s greatest victory. It was a derby dream come true.

– I often wonder if it will ever be my turn. I’ve had that dream since I started as a jockey. It’s “huge, huge”, said Eiksmarka’s William Buick after his English Derby win at Epsom Downs outside London on Saturday afternoon.

First prize is NOK 9.2 million. Ten percent of this goes to the winning jockey. That means a nice payday of one million kroner for Buick. He also won one of the frame races on Saturday.

Prestige and history

But as he himself said many times; “Money doesn’t mean anything on a day like this, what matters is prestige and history.”

The winning horse Masar was owned by the Godolphin Stall, the world’s largest horse owner and William Buick’s employer.

The man behind; Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al Maktoum, Vice President of the Emirates and “Ruler of Dubai”.

This was Godolphin’s first win in an English Derby.

Started as a pony rider in Øvrevoll

– He stood in the distance and ran beautifully all the way, William Buick told Sky Sports after victory in a race where big favorite Saxon Warrior was fourth. Buick put his horse in the middle of the field and from the start looked like a winner as the attack mounted.

Of the twelve horses, Masar ranked fifth with 16 times the money in play.

29-year-old William, who was born and raised in Bærum, started his career as a pony rider at Øvrevoll. He was the son of Walter Buick, who with his 844 Øvrevoll wins topped the all-time statistics. William, who left for England aged 16, has so far won 48 races in 2018 and raised NOK 70 million for his horse owners. He has won sprint races in 17 different countries, but never in Norway and in Øvrevoll where his career began.