Horse Racing: Dettori Faces Derby Fitness Race

Frankie Dettori overcame a major hurdle in his quest for his first Derby winner when freed by Godolphin to ride the hot favorite, Authorized, at Epsom on Saturday. But the jockey faces an anxious couple of days to prove his fitness after the knee injury he sustained at Goodwood last Friday flared up again at Sandown on Tuesday night.

After partnering four seconds on the card, Dettori decided to give up his five booked rides yesterday. However, he plans to return with three mounts in the featured races at Sandown Park this evening. "Frankie's knee was sore after Tuesday, but I expect him to be back tomorrow night," said the jockey's agent, Ray Cochrane, yesterday.

Dettori, who has his best chance of a Derby victory at the 15th attempt on Authorized, also has important rides at Epsom tomorrow when he teams up with Sixties Icon in the Vodafone Coronation Cup and Measured Tempo in the Oaks.

After her own injury scare, Measured Tempo looks set to make the line-up for the fillies' Classic, from which Silkwood was the only withdrawal at yesterday's final declaration stage. Henry Cecil's Passage Of Time, cut to 6-4 favorite from 13-8 by Hill's, heads the 14-strong field.

Cochrane reckons the Oaks is more open than the betting suggests. "Frankie has a major chance on Measured Tempo. She was still green when she won at Newbury and she will love the soft ground."

Testing conditions seem guaranteed for Oaks day after a further four millimeters of rain fell at an already soaked Epsom yesterday. "There was enough to lose the good to soft element and just call it soft," said clerk of the course Andrew Cooper. However, after an initial forecast of another wet day on Saturday, conditions may well have improved for the Derby.

"The forecast is for a diminishing risk of showers on Friday and dry on Saturday," said Cooper. "On that basis you would think the ground would if anything be better on Saturday when we might get up to somewhere around 20 degrees."

Meanwhile, Aidan O'Brien plans to run a remarkable eight horses in the Derby with Wayne Lordan booked for Chester Vase winner Soldier Of Fortune.

Lordan told At The Races last night:"He won quite well at Chester and stays well. He's a good horse, he's tough and he's hard to get by, so hopefully he will run a big race. I think the ground should be OK for him."

Mick Kinane is expected to ride O'Brien's chief hope, Archipenko, with Seamus Heffernan on Admiralofthefleet, Fran Berry on Acapulco, Declan McDonogh aboard Anton Chekhov, Johnny Murtagh on Eagle Mountain, Pat Smullen partnering Mahler and Colm O'Donoghue teaming up with the 33-1 outsider Yellowstone.

Archipenko is an 8-1 chance with Coral and Ladbrokes following his win in the traditionally informative Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial last time out, where he was ridden by Kinane.

Ron Cox's tip of the day


Cushat Law 5.10 Yarmouth

William Jarvis, successful with Tobosa in the big race at Haydock last Saturday, made it three wins from his last six runners when Killena Boy won at Sandown on Tuesday. Cushat Law can maintain the good run from a modest mark of 54 on her handicap debut. The filly hinted at better to come when seventh behind Metaphoric on her final outing at Nottingham and may have got in lightly.