Horatio Nelson looks set to be Kieren Fallon's Derby ride at Epsom on Saturday after the colt impressed in a critical work-out at Aidan O'Brien's Ballydoyle yard yesterday.
Fallon, successful in three of the last seven editions of racing's blue riband event, rode all four of O'Brien's Derby entries yesterday and Horatio Nelson's early morning spin resulted in a flood of money that had bookmakers cutting him to a general 9 to 2 second favourite for Epsom.
The official Ballydoyle line yesterday was that a final decision on riding arrangements won't be made until today but O'Brien later described Coolmore Stud's retained jockey as being "very happy" with Horatio Nelson's gallop.
"None of the four disappointed in what they did but Kieren was very happy with Horatio.
"He rode him before the Guineas and he was much happier with him this time," said the champion trainer.
"But obviously they will have to be scoped and have their bloods taken so to be fair to everyone we won't make a final decision until Wednesday," he added.
The bookmakers though appear to be in little doubt that Horatio Nelson will be Fallon's pick from the six Coolmore- owned horses remaining among the 22 Derby entries.
"The dramatic move for Horatio Nelson is the biggest non-verbal sign that Fallon has decided who he will ride on Saturday," said Tony Kenny of William Hill who had been 9 to 1 about Horatio Nelson at the start of business yesterday.
"If money talks, then Kieren Fallon will be on Horatio Nelson and not Septimus," added a totesport spokesman who lengthened the Dante winner out to 6 to 1 while a Corals spokesman reported:
"This is a huge gamble in terms of both size and significance with all the right people wanting to be on the one horse."
Horatio Nelson finished only eighth behind his stable companion George Washington in the 2,000 Guineas but will be attempting to follow in some family footsteps at Epsom.
It's five years since his dam Imagine landed a classic victory in the Oaks and Horatio Nelson has already tasted top-flight success in last October's Grand Criterium at Longchamp.
O'Brien and Fallon will team up in Friday's Oaks with the ante-post favourite Alexandrova who will be joined by another Irish filly in Jim Bolger's unbeaten runner Galatee, supplemented into the classic at a cost of £20,000.
Bolger won the Oaks with the 50 to 1 outsider Jet Ski Lady 15 years ago but doesn't see too many similarities between the two horses.
"She's a different sort to Jet Ski Lady who was a reasonably precocious two-year-old who managed to win a couple of times in her first year.
"So we knew what we were dealing with from earlier in her career. But Galatee is more of a late developer.
"We think she is pretty talented and this will be her big test. It looks a nice opportunity for her. We can have two bites of the Oaks cherry now with the Irish Oaks coming up too. She didn't show much as a two-year-old so we didn't have her entered but she's been making up for it since she ran. You can never know about Epsom but we think she will handle the track," Bolger said.
The former champion trainer also reported that his star older filly Alexander Goldrun will run next in the Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh after finishing runner-up to Hurricane Run in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the weekend.
"Everybody was impressed with her bar the handicapper who dropped her by 3lb which was rather generous of him if we're going to run her in handicaps," he said.
