Derby favourite Boru pleases in workout

Vodafone Derby favourite Brian Boru pleased connections in a workout under race conditions after racing at Leopardstown on Sunday.

The Aidan O’Brien-trained Sadler’s Colt went 10 furlongs from stalls under Mick Kinane in company with stablemates Dickens and The Great Gatsby.

Dickens and The Great Gatsby cut out the pace with the latter going a couple of lengths up two furlongs from home.

Kinane appeared on his outside around a furlong out and beat him about a length at the line in a time roughly four seconds slower than that of the Ballysax Stakes earlier in the day.

Kinane said: “I was happy with Brian Boru. He’s in good shape and moved well - we did enough ahead of the Derrinstown Derby Trial.”

The jockey had earlier suffered a shock defeat aboard Alberto Giacometti in the Ballysax and said of that horse: “He definitely got tired but it was still a bit disappointing. Without doubt the second (Alamshar) is a very good horse, Johnny (Murtagh) and I were playing cat and mouse and I hold my hands up for that.

“He seemed okay on the ground, it was the quickest he’s raced on but I wouldn’t be blaming that.”

Ladbrokes make Brian Boru 4-1 market leader for the Epsom Classic with Alamshar 7-1 second-best. Refuse To Bend and Hold That Tiger are both 10-1.