Christmas Day and Benvenuto Cellini are among 11 runners declared for Sunday’s Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at the Curragh, where Aidan O’Brien has five chances to extend his extraordinary Classic record.
The 1m4f Group 1, worth €712,500 to the winner, is due off at 4.35pm and will be shown on RTE1, with the latest Irish Derby racecard listing good ground and a full field of colts.
Christmas Day brings the strongest official profile into the race with an OR of 118, while Benvenuto Cellini, Action, Causeway and Pierre Bonnard give Ballydoyle a powerful spread across a Classic that has often bent to O’Brien pressure.
O’Brien Family Holds The Strongest Hand
The Ballydoyle challenge is backed up by family depth, with Donnacha O’Brien represented by A Boy Named Susie and Shaihaan, and Joseph O’Brien sending James J Braddock into the same field.
British interest adds genuine shape to the contest. Ralph Beckett runs Bay Of Brilliance, Richard Hannon relies on Bunyola Bay and Owen Burrows sends Raaheeb, an unbeaten colt with an official rating of 112.
The declaration keeps alive the central Derby-weekend storyline: whether Epsom form, Ballydoyle numbers or a British improver will define Ireland’s premier Flat Classic. For context on the trainer’s record in the race, Read Horse Racing has also profiled every Aidan O’Brien Irish Derby winner.
