Ebor Festival: Derby joint-favourites in line for Acomb clash

A clash between next year’s 2000 Guineas and Derby favourites looks to be on the cards in the Tattersalls Acomb Stakes at next week, with both and entered for the Group Three feature.

Both highly-touted youngsters made winning debuts recently, with Charlie Appleby’s €2,300,000 Justify colt Ruling Court bolting up at Sandown Park by over five lengths.

He is already as low as 8-1 for the Guineas, while Aidan O’Brien’s The Lion In Winter, who is by Sea The Stars and won by over two lengths at the when ridden by Wayne Lordan, only 10-1 in places for Epsom glory.

David Stevens of Coral said:  "Although The Lion In Winter and Ruling Court have won only a maiden apiece, such was the impressions they made on their respective debuts, the pair are already joint favourites for next year's Derby, making Wednesday's Acomb Stakes a potential very early Epsom Classic trial," said Coral's David Stevens. 

“He got a very good rating and everybody had a lot of good stuff to say about him after (his debut run). Wayne rode him and he really liked him,” O’Brien told Racing TV.

“We’ll see, we’ll find out as we go along. We have one eye on the Goffs Million with him and this would be a lovely race in between.

“The Goffs is a seven-furlong race at the Curragh, York will be fast and sharp and win, lose or draw we think he will learn a lot there and it will stand him in good stead for his next race.”

There are 20 entries, with Hugo Palmer’s Wolf Of Badenoch, Even Johnson Houghton’s and the Andrew Balding pair of and among them.

O’Brien has supplemented his Irish Derby winner Los Angeles for the Sky Bet Great Voltigeur.

He will be conceding a penalty to all his rivals for that success, and could come up against stablemates Illinois, Chief Little Rock, Euphoric and .

Deira Mile, fourth in the Derby for Owen Burrows, has had this race as a target for some time, while King’s Gambit goes back in against his own age group having come up just short against last time out.

William Haggas’ Space Legend, disappointing in the Bahrain Trophy on his most recent outing, completes the list of eight.