French Derby Preview: Aussie Rules has been made a 3 to 1 favourite to provide Aidan O'Brien and Kieren Fallon with their first wins in the French Derby at Chantilly tomorrow.
Paddy Power didn't hesitate yesterday to make the Irish colt their market leader on the back of his narrow success in last month's French 2,000 Guineas at Longchamp.
Shamardal completed the Classic double in last year's Prix du Jockey Club and a total of 14 opponents, including his stable companion, Hurricane Cat, will line up against Aussie Rules.
The Jockey Club has proved a frustrating race for O'Brien in the past and his two runners in 2005, Scorpion and Falstaff, finished last and second last.
Other Irish interest will be provided by Michael Kinane who will ride the local hope Barastraight and Jamie Spencer is scheduled to team up with the Barry Hills-trained Olympian Odyssey who ran third to George Washington in the Newmarket Guineas last month.
He has been switched from Epsom to run in the French Derby and so has Frankie Dettori's mount Art Deco. Tomorrow's race will be just the second time that the Derby has been run over an extended mile and a quarter.
BETTING (Paddy Power): 3 Aussie Rules, 9-2 Olympian Odyssey, 6 Numide, 8 Best Name, 10 Barastraight, 12 Bar.
