AIDAN O’BRIEN HAS confirmed that Ryan Moore will ride Derby hero Anthony Van Dyck in Saturday’s Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby, with the big-race favourite one of six entries in the Classic from Ballydoyle.

O’Brien’s stable stalwart Seamie Heffernan partnered the Galileo colt to a narrow victory at Epsom this month, but Moore, the connections’ number-one jockey, will take over this weekend.

“Ryan always rides the number-one horse and that will obviously be Anthony Van Dyck,” said O’Brien, who has won the Irish Derby an astonishing 12 times.

Moore and Anthony Van Dyck may not, however, have things all their own way at the Curragh as Kevin Prendergast, trainer of Madhmoon, reports the Epsom second to be “bombing at home” in advance of the Classic rematch.

Top jockey Kevin Manning, an Irish Derby winner on Trading Leather in 2013, was talking on Tuesday morning at an event to promote the valuable highlight and seems sweet on the tables being turned.

He said: “I think Madhmoon has a great chance. Whatever beats him will win.”

Johnny Murtagh, who won four Irish Derbys during his time in the saddle, is another member of the Madhmoon fan club, and added: “I’m not saying he’ll definitely win but I expect him to be in the shake-up.”

– Mark Boylan; for more visit the Racing Post  

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