Khalid Abdullah’s DOCTOR FREMANTLE (Sadler’s Wells) will be supplemented to
the Epsom Derby (Eng-G1), for which 21 entries remained after the latest forfeit
stage. Connections announced that the Chester Vase (Eng-G3) winner would be added to
the list at a cost of £75,000. That will boost the Sir Michael Stoute team for the
£1.25 million June 7 classic to a maximum of three alongside Ballymacoll Stud’s Dante S.
(Eng-G2) winner TARTAN BEARER (Spectrum) and Sheikh Hamdan bin
Rashid Al Maktoum’s Dee S. (Eng-G3) scorer TAJAAWEED (Dynaformer).
Despite the
inclusion of Princess Haya of Jordan’s NEW APPROACH (Galileo [Ire]),
trainer Jim Bolger stated that he was left in due to an error and will not be
lining up.
The current antepost favorite is Patrick Cooper’s Beresford S.
(Ire-G2) winner CURTAIN CALL (Sadler’s Wells), while Godolphin has left in two
high-class contenders in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere (Fr-G1) winner and Poule
d’Essai des Poulains (French Two Thousand Guineas) (Fr-G1) runner-up RIO DE LA
PLATA (Rahy) and
last year’s Racing Post Trophy (Eng-G1) winner IBN KHALDUN (Dubai Destination).
Aidan
O’Brien can call on a seven-strong team including Susan Magnier’s Two Thousand Guineas
(Eng-G1) winner HENRYTHENAVIGATOR (Kingmambo), Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith and
Magnier’s Lingfield Derby Trial (Eng-G3) scorer ALESSANDRO VOLTA (Montjeu [Ire])
and the Dante runner-up FROZEN FIRE (Montjeu [Ire]).
Among the
remaining French entry is His Highness the Aga Khan’s Prix Greffulhe (Fr-G2)
runner-up RIPPLE (Rock of Gibraltar [Ire]) from the Jean-Claude Rouget
yard.
Clerk of the Course and Director of Racing Andrew Cooper has a keen eye on
the unpredictable British weather ahead of the Blue Riband.
“The course at Epsom
Downs is in good condition and at present the ground is generally good to firm,”
he said Friday. “The forecast for the Bank Holiday weekend is for unsettled
conditions, with the chance of rain on Sunday and Monday.”