Dubai: Godolphin’s prospective big-race contender Answered will be hoping to tick all the right boxes when he runs in the Group 3 Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial at Leopardstown, Ireland on Sunday.
Trained by Jim Bolger in Ireland, the son of Authorised takes on seven rivals, in this 2,000m contest that has thrown up some top class winners of the English and Irish Derbies including Sinndar (2000), Galileo (2001) and High Chaparral (2002).
Authorised offered clues to his Derby credentials when delivering smart performances in two starts this season, the first when winning his maiden at the Curragh in March and then following it up with a spirited second-place effort to Fascinating Rock in the Ballysax Stakes (G3) at Navan in April.
Dermot Weld’s colt also opposes on Sunday in a race that has attracted some high-quality colts among them Aidan O’Brien’s Beresford Stakes (G2) scorer Geoffrey Chaucer and the Ger Lyons-trained Obliterator who finished seven-lengths behind Godolphin’s True Story in the Fielden Stakes.
Answered does not hold an entry for the Epsom Classic on June 7 yet, but is pencilled in for the Irish 2,000 Guineas (Group 1) at the Curragh on May 24 and the King Edward VII Stakes (Group 2) at Royal Ascot on June 20.
However, all that could change should he deliver a big effort on Sunday.
Another interesting contender is the John Oxx-trained Ebanoran who won on debut last October and followed it up with a good third place effort in the Leopardstown 2,000 Guineas Trial at the end of March.
Meanwhile, Godolphin’s French operation sees the Andre Fabre-trained Decathlete face 13 runs in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains (2,000 Guineas) at Longchamp, France, on Sunday.
