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The Investec Derby trial season cranks up a notch this week, with Chester's three-day May Festival starting tomorrow, Wednesday, May 10, and Lingfield Park's Derby Trial fixture on Saturday, May 13.
Fresh from two Classic triumphs at Newmarket over the weekend, Aidan O'Brien is well-represented in the eight-runner G3 MBNA Chester Vase (2.35pm, Thursday, May 11, 1m 4f 63y) as he bids for an eighth victory in the race since 2007.
The champion Irish Flat trainer's past Chester Vase winners include 2013 Investec Derby hero Ruler Of The World and 2016 Investec Derby runner-up US Army Ranger as well as Irish Derby victors Treasure Beach and Soldier of Fortune.
O'Brien's quartet this year is made up of impressive Tipperary maiden winner Venice Beach, who is a half-brother to Danedream, G2 Royal Lodge Stakes runner-up The Anvil, Finn McCool and Wings Of Eagles. All four colts have entries in the Investec Derby, with Britain's premier Classic and richest race taking place at Epsom Downs on Saturday, June 3
The opposition on Thursday includes two Frankel colts in Cunco (John Gosden/Frankie Dettori) and Count Octave (Andrew Balding/David Probert). Cunco needed all of 10 furlongs when getting up on the line in the G3 Classic Trial at Sandown on April 28, while Count Octave, a three-parts brother to Treasure Beach, was off the mark at the second attempt in a Wolverhampton maiden on March 28.
The Chester Vase line-up is completed by Investec Derby entries Tamleek (Saeed bin Suroor/Jim Crowley), an eye-catching maiden winner for Godolphin at Newmarket's Craven meeting, and Dundalk maiden scorer Druids Cross (Joseph O'Brien IRE/Donnacha O'Brien).
Her Majesty The Queen is set to be represented by homebred Call To Mind, trained by William Haggas in Newmarket, in the Listed Homeserve Dee Stakes (2.25pm, 24 entries, 1m 2f 60y) at Chester on Friday, May 12.
The three-year-old Galileo colt, who has an entry in the Investec Derby, justified favouritism on debut in a mile maiden at Newbury on April 22, when staying on strongly in the closing stages to win by a neck, with The Queen present.
John Warren, racing manager to The Queen, said today: "Call To Mind is fine and the plan is to run in the Dee Stakes on Friday.
"He has obviously improved and learnt a bit from his maiden win. He needs some more education and we think Chester is certainly somewhere that will help him in that respect going forward.
"Looking at him physically, I would say getting a mile and a quarter should not be any problem at all."
Aidan O'Brien five entries are headed by the highly-regarded Cliffs Of Moher, who thrashed stablemate Orderofthegarter in a Leopardstown maiden in October.
Other Investec Derby contenders among the Dee Stakes entries include recent Sandown Park victor Atty Persse (Roger Charlton), Mirage Dancer (Sir Michael Stoute) and the Salouen (Sylvester Kirk), who was placed twice at G1 level last season.
The last horse to use the Dee Stakes as a springboard for Investec Derby success was Kris Kin in 2003.
Chester also stages the Listed Cheshire Oaks (2.25pm, 1m 3f 75y, eight runners) on Wednesday, May 10, which is a trial for the Investec Oaks, staged at Epsom Downs on Investec Ladies' Day, Friday, June 2.
Aidan O'Brien and Ryan Moore team up with Tipperary maiden winner Alluringly, while John Gosden and Frankie Dettori are in opposition with Khalid Abdullah-owned Enable.
Other key runners include G2 May Hill Stakes winner Rich Legacy (Ralph Beckett/Oisin Murphy), Tansholpan (Roger Varian/Andrea Atzeni) and Argenterie (Marcus Tregoning/Martin Dwyer).
There could be further clues to the Epsom Downs Classics at Lingfield on Saturday with the Listed Betfred Mobile Oaks Trial (1.55pm) and Listed Betfred Derby Trial (2.30pm). Both contests take place over an extended 11 furlongs on turf.
Of the 23 entries for the Lingfield Derby Trial, 15 are currently engaged in the Investec Derby. They include Godolphin's Atty Persse, recent impressive Ripon maiden scorer Daawy (William Haggas) and Zamffir (Charlie Appleby), a son of 2008 Investec Derby hero New Approach who made a winning debut for Godolphin at Leicester last month.
The O'Brien-trained entries for the Lingfield Derby trial include G2-placed Exemplar plus the maiden winners Belgravia and Sir John Lavery. The last winner of the Lingfield contest to go on and score in the premier Classic was High-Rise in 1998.
Eight of the 12 Lingfield Oaks Trial entries hold Investec Oaks entries. Ralph Beckett saddled Look Here to finish second at Lingfield prior to her 2008 Oaks success and he could be represented on Saturday by Camerone, who was a promising fourth behind Atty Persse last season at Sandown Park prior to landing a maiden at Brighton.
Other possible starters at Lingfield include the once-raced maiden winners The Sky Is Blazing (William Haggas) and Vintage Folly (Hugo Palmer), while O'Brien's three entries are led by recent Listed runner-up Pocketfullofdreams.
Ante-post market
Churchill (Aidan O'Brien) heads the market for at 4/1 the Investec Derby with Unibet, official betting partner of the Investec Derby, following his success in the first Classic of the season, the mile QIPCO 2000 Guineas at Newmarket on Saturday, May 6.
O'Brien was also on the mark on Sunday in the G3 Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial at Leopardstown, with Douglas Macarthur leading stable companions Yucatan and Capri by a head and a short-head. O'Brien won the Leopardstown contest with his Investec Derby victors Galileo (2001) and High Chaparral (2002).
The first fillies' Classic, the QIPCO 1000 Guineas over a mile at Newmarket on Sunday, went to the O'Brien-trained Winter, who got the better of her stablemate Rhododendron over a mile at Newmarket on Sunday. Rhododendron, who stayed on well at Newmarket, heads Unibet's betting for the Investec Oaks at 9/4, ahead of Shutter Speed (7/1), an impressive winner against the colts at Newbury last month.
Investec Derby, latest Unibet betting:
4/1 Churchill; 8/1 Cracksman; 10/1 Barney Roy, Cliffs Of Moher; 12/1 Eminent; 14/1 Sir John Lavery; 16/1 Yucatan; 20/1 Capri, Douglas Macarthur, Orderofthegarter, Rekindling; 25/1 Atty Persse, Call To Mind, Rivet, Tartini, Waldgeist, Youmkin; 33/1 Bar
Investec Oaks, latest Unibet betting:
9/4 Rhododendron; 7/1 Shutter Speed; 8/1 Winter; 10/1 Coronet; 12/1 Talaayeb, Horseplay; 16/1 Tocco D'Amore; 20/1 Crimson Rock, Hydrangea, Promise To Be True; 22/1 The Sky Is Blazing; 25/1 Alluringly, Aneen, Astronomy's Choice, Bean Feasa, Enable, Gracious Diana, Intricately, Isabel De Urbina, Rain Goddess, Really Special, Rich Legacy; 33/1 Bar