5/10/12 - The John Oxx-trained Akeed Mofeed, currently a 14/1 third-favourite
for the Investec Derby at Epsom, on June 2, may miss his intended prep race
for the blue riband contest. Connections are concerned that he hasn’t yet
fully recovered from a bout of lameness that forced him to miss taking his
chance in last week’s Qipco 2000 Guineas at Newmarket, writes Elliot Slater.
The son of Dubawi has been mooted as one of the main dangers to Ballydoyle’s
Guineas winner, Camelot, on the strength of three smart efforts, last term.
After running fourth on his debut at Leopardstown, in August, over seven
furlongs, the Jaber Abdullah-owned colt then returned to race over the same
course and distance, when hacking up from Aidan O’Brien’s Athens, winning
eased down by five-lengths, a performance that did not go unnoticed by those
compiling the ante-post list for the 2012 classics.
His winning effort had been on good ground, and Oxx had his doubts whether
very testing conditions at the Curragh, in late-September, would be suitable
for his up-and-coming juvenile. He allowed him to take his chance, and step
up to a mile for the first time in the Group 2 Juddmonte Beresford Stakes, a
race for which he was made the 5/6 market leader in the horse
racing betting charts.
Racing in mid-division, Akeed Mofeed was clearly far from comfortable in the
heavy ground, and came under pressure with three furlongs to run, but, to
his credit, he stuck to his task with tremendous fortitude under Johnny
Murtagh and, in the end, failed by just half-a-length to peg back the useful
David Livingston.
Oxx fears that the Group 2 Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial might come a few
days too soon for his charge. He will leave a decision on the participation
of Akeed Mofeed until the very last minute. Should he fail to make his
intended prep race, there would have to be a massive doubt about the
potentially high-class performer making the Derby line-up itself, just three
weeks later.
For more information on Akeed Mofeed and the Investec Derby, visit the Betfair
Epsom Derby Festival website.
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