easily into the lead a furlong out. She won by a length from The Smew and Adoration in a time of 1:52.4, which was 1.6 seconds faster than the time recorded by Bona Vista in winning the 2000 Guineas over the same course. Summer At Epsom on 1 June La Fleche started 11/10 favourite for the Derby on a "gloriously fine" day. She was saddled and paraded separately from the colts for reasons that correspondents chose not to particularise. The French-trained colt Bucentaur led the field into the straight where he was overtaken by the 40/1 outsider Sir Hugo. La Fleche then produced her challenge but after a "splendid finish" in which she was cheered on by the crowd, she failed to overhaul the colt and finished second, beaten three quarters of a length. There were later claims that La Fleche’s defeat had been a fluke and Barrett was criticised for giving her a "most erratic ride". This version of events is not supported by contemporary accounts, which state that the filly was in a "capital position" throughout the race. Two days after her defeat in the Derby, La Fleche ran against fillies in the Oaks. Although some regarded her as a certainty, her odds drifted from 2/5 to 8/11 before the start. In the race she tracked the leader Broad Corrie before taking the lead in the straight apparently poised for an easy victory. In the final furlong however, she was closely pressed by The Smew, a filly she had dealt with easily in the 1000 Guineas, and Barrett had to ride a vigorous finish to win the race by a short head. On 29 July at Goodwood, La Fleche won the Nassau Stakes in which, despite looking less than fully fit, she quickened impressively to bear Broad Corrie by a length and a half. Autumn On 7 September La Fleche ran in the St Leger on a wet day at Doncaster. Orme, who had returned from his problems to win the Eclipse Stakes started favourite, with La Fleche, ridden on this occasion by John Watts, strongly supported at 7/2. Watts settled the filly in the early stages as Orme set off in front. Just after the turn into the straight, La Fleche, travelling strongly, moved alongside her stable companion and then pulled clear. She won easily by two lengths from the fast-finishing Sir Hugo, with Orme fading into