Not for many years has a horse so dominated one of the biggest occasions in the racing calendar. If, as many said, the Coral Eclipse needed a lift, the race was given it in the best way by Sea The Stars at Sandown yesterday. The stands were packed, the sun shone and for a moment, as Sea The Stars was tackled by Rip Van Winkle a furlong out, the world stood still.

From the time the dual Classic winner emerged gleaming into the sunlight, he turned heads like a film star on Oscar night. Far from being disconcerted about being rerouted from last weekend’s Irish Derby over a mile and a half to his first engagement with the older generation over 10 furlongs, Sea The Stars exuded the touch of arrogance essential to all great champions. Cameras clicked and the eyes of every owner in the pre-parade ring were drawn to the presence of the 2,000 Guineas and Derby winner.

In contrast, John Oxx, his trainer, is a man who could be the first in the queue for a lift and still be left watching the doors close without him. He is one of life’s shadow-dwellers, the only trainer who feels the need to show his pass entering the stables and the only one who has to be forced into the centre stage for the post-race photograph. It is the Year of the Ox in China; in Newmarket, Epsom and now Sandown too.

Not for the first time, Sea The Stars had to drag history on his back as well as Mick Kinane, his imperturbable 50-year-old jockey, to became the first horse since Nashwan, in 1989, to complete the Eclipse, Derby and 2,000 Guineas treble; Royal Palace won the two Classics in 1967 and the Eclipse as a four-year-old in 1968. In recent years, Erhaab, Benny The Dip, Motivator and Authorized have all won the Derby and been beaten in the Eclipse. But nobody among the 15,000 crowd packed in yesterday needed a history lesson to tell them they were in the presence of greatness.

“He’s got such a great presence,” said Kinane, whose own career has been given a new lease of life. “You don’t have to be a great judge of a horse to know that he’s got it, and he knows it too.”

Kinane’s confidence was tested more in the days after the colt’s late withdrawal from the Irish Derby last Sunday than the race itself. But one swift gallop on Tuesday morning had reassured Kinane that all was well. “It was business as usual,” he said. “He’s bombproof. From the moment I first sat on him, I couldn’t believe he’d come along and not for one step has he disappointed me.”

The doubters had made cases for at least two rivals. One, Rip Van Winkle, came with a very similar profile to Oratorio, who had downed Motivator’s colours so comprehensively four years ago. Indeed, three of Aidan O’Brien’s four Eclipse winners had been beaten, like Rip Van Winkle, in the Guineas. With Jimmy Fortune replacing the suspended Johnny Murtagh, Coolmore’s power — with Set Sail and Malibu Bay as pacemakers — was in evidence once again. Then there was Sir Michael Stoute’s Conduit, a St Leger and Breeder’s Cup winner, another bound to test Sea The Stars’ stamina.

In reality, the race was over once Sea The Stars strode into the paddock, a picture of muscled good health. If anyone thought that two Classics and an aborted preparation for the Irish Derby had taken its toll, one look was sufficient. When Kinane burst from the gates, as he had last month at Epsom, and found a place on the inside well within sight of the two pacemakers, the race seemed set to be dancing to the tune of the 4-7 favourite. No matter what tactics had been devised by Coolmore, Sea The Stars and Kinane held the masterplan. “He travels so quick and has such unique pace, you always feel in control of the race,” said Kinane. “It’s a great feeling.”

There was still one glimpse of redemption for Rip Van Winkle as the dark colours of Fortune came out of the pack to tackle the favourite a furlong from home. But Sea The Stars was only kidding and with one half-hearted tap from Kinane, the tenderest of wake-up calls, the champion was away, putting a comfortable-looking length between him and his pursuer by the line, with Conduit four lengths away in third.

“The race didn’t quite go according to plan,” admitted Oxx. “He was in front too early, but I did like the way he stretched away when he was tackled. You know, he could jump out and run in a sprint. I’m sounding a bit like Aidan O’Brien now, but it’s the reality.”

The one concern for connections came off the course when owner Christopher Tsui fainted while he was waiting for the horse to return to the paddock. Part excitement, part heat, said the likeable Hong Kong businessman, who is only just beginning to understand what a lucky man he is. Now comes the guessing game about the future, though with Oxx there will be no spin, no smoke or mirrors.

The King George over a mile and four furlongs, at Ascot in three weeks’ time, would certainly be tempting, but the Irish Champion Stakes in the autumn over 10 furlongs, possible Sea The Stars’ optimum distance, is “the major objective”, according to the trainer.

Sea The Stars’ return to the winners’ enclosure turned into a triumphal procession, the applause rippling through this grand racecourse. This was a moment to savour. Sea The Stars even won the prize for the best turned-out horse in the race. “He would do,” laughed Kinane. “He ticks all the boxes.”