Yeats storms to Derby favouritism
One of O'Brien's talented two-year-olds, Necklace, is likely to lead his assault on Ascot's big meeting on Saturday.
The Moyglare Stud Stakes winner is earmarked for the Meon Valley Stud Fillies' Mile with Statue Of Liberty a possible for the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, Tycoon pencilled in for the Hackney Empire Royal Lodge Stakes and Salt Lake City being considered for the Millennium & Copthorne Hotels Diadem Stakes.
Meanwhile Yeats, also trained by Aidan O'Brien, made an early claim for Derby glory by making an impressive winning debut at the Curragh.
The Sadler's Wells colt is 16-1 favourite for the premier Classic with Corals to give O'Brien a third Derby success in four years following a facile four-length win.
The 6-4 favourite was always cruising in the hands of Michael Kinane and coasted home in the Korean Racing Association Maiden over a mile from another newcomer Haratila, trained by John Oxx.
"He is a proper horse and the plan was always to give him just one race this season for experience. He has plenty of class and is one of our better two-year-olds," said O'Brien.
Irish-born jockey Jamie Spencer and Newmarket trainer David Loder combined for another significant juvenile success when Sutter's Fort landed the €200,000 Irish Breeders Foal Levy Stakes.
Sheikh Mohammed's 5-1 chance proved three-quarters of a length too good for the 9-4 market leader Favourite Nation with Chained Emotion denying another English raider Chinsola by a short head for third.
"That was very satisfying - our horse did it well. The ideal way to ride him is to come late like Jamie did here," said Loder who also took Friday's Mill Reef Stakes at Newbury with another of Spencer's mounts Byron.
"Sutter's Fort is a good, game little horse. His one asset is a change of gear," said Spencer.
Loder will look for a Listed race next for the winner.
"This was his perfect trip, just over six furlongs, and he wouldn't want it soft so everything came right today for him," he said.
An English-based Irish-born rider also took the other main race on the card as Richard Hughes produced Venturi with a perfectly-timed challenge to land the C L Weld Park Stakes at 10-1.
"Venturi is a lovely filly and picked up nicely for me," said Hughes.
