Aidan O'Brien hasn't ruled out a mouth-watering clash between his 2,000 Guineas joint-favourites George Washington and Ivan Denisovich in Sunday's Group One Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh.

The Ballydoyle trainer is attempting to regain his dominance of the Independent Waterford Wedgwood-sponsored race, Europe's first Group One contest of the year for juveniles, after a remarkable six-in-a-row winning streak was halted last year by Damson.

Before that, two-year-old champions like Johannesburg (2001) and Fasliyev (1999) had provided O'Brien with total dominance and he has four of the 11 entries left in the six-furlong race after yesterday's declaration stage.

The eye-catching part of the entry is provided by George Washington and Ivan Denisovich, each a Group Two winner already, in the Railway Stakes and the July Stakes respectively, and 16 to 1 joint favourites with the likes Victor Chandler and Paddy Power for next year's 2,000 Guineas.

Another Ballydoyle youngster, Horatio Nelson, is also near the top of the Classic betting and provides O'Brien with a monopoly at the top of the 2,000 Guineas market.

"It's early in the week and nothing is sure, but it is definitely possible that George Washington and Ivan Denisovich could run," O'Brien said yesterday. "There are factors at home that will have to be sorted out first but it is possible."

The other two Ballydoyle entries are Amadeus Mozart and Nero while a trio of British entries will try to become the first since Princely Heir in 1997 to be a cross-channel winner.

That horse was trained by Mark Johnston and his hope Desert Realm, sixth to Ivan Denisovich at Newmarket last month, could travel along with the Coventry winner Red Clubs who is likely to be ridden by Michael Kinane.

The Phoenix Stakes has gone to Kinane four times already with the jockey's first winner, King Persian, coming in 1983.

Jim Bolger has won the race twice with Mantovani (1996) and Eva Luna (1994) and could rely this time on Namaya who was less than a length behind George Washington in the Railway Stakes in June. Namaya has since won at Naas.

Bookmaker reaction from Cashmans was to make the O'Brien stable a 4 to 5 favourite to win the Phoenix Stakes with Red Clubs rated the danger at 5 to 2. Namaya is a 4 to 1 shot.

Last year's Phoenix Stakes winner Damson is set to revert to sprinting in Sunday's Phoenix Sprint for which 13 British-trained horses were left in yesterday.

Just 12 remain in the Group Two Royal Whip Stakes, including the Hardwicke winner Bandari and Robbie Osborne's McDonogh Handicap winner Latino Magic.

The 10-furlong contest could be the first leg of an ambitious transatlantic double by Powercourt, however .

"Powerscourt is also in the Arlington Million the week after so we will see later in the week what we will do. It's possible he could run in both," said O'Brien yesterday.

Powerscourt was dramatically thrown out of first place by the Arlington stewards in last year's Million after causing interference in the closing stages under rider Jamie Spencer.

The Curragh authorities are forecasting good ground for the weekend but predicted rain on Thursday night will have a big say in what conditions will be.

"We are currently good on the round course and good to yielding on the straight," reported the Curragh manager Paul Hensey yesterday.

"We are supposed to get relatively dry weather until Thursday night when we could get some rain. It depends on how much we get, but I think we will be there or thereabouts with good ground."

Rumplestiltskin, third in the Albany Stakes at York, is one of the 16 left in the Group Two Robert H Griffin Debutante Stakes, a race that Jeremy Noseda has left in three entries, including the highly-rated Salut D'Amour.

Both Kieren Fallon and Johnny Murtagh travel west to Sligo this evening and Murtagh could make one of his Michael Halford-trained mounts, Petite Bois, count in the second six-furlong handicap.

Fallon is on Enfield Chase for Tommy Stack in the first six-furlong handicap, but a horse he has ridden more than once this season, the veteran One Won One, could go well in this out of a good draw in box 10 of 13.

Stack also supplies Fallon's mount, Final Quest, in the two-year-old claimer, but this one's poor run at Cork is hardly encouraging and preference is for the consistent De Roberto.

Cashmans bet Phoenix Stakes: 4-5 Aidan O'Brien stable, 5-2 Red Clubs, 4 Namaya, 10 Guest Connections, 14 Desert Realm, 50 Ugo Fire, 66 Shinko Dancer.