Yeats a big doubt for Derby

The participation of the long-time favourite Yeats in Saturday´s Epsom Derby is now in serious doubt, with a final decision likely to be made this morning.

The unbeaten Aidan O´Brien-trained colt has been plagued with muscle problems in the last fortnight and despite extensive physiotherapy it returned to haunt O´Brien yesterday.

'Yeats worked very well this morning but in the afternoon he was stiff,' said O´Brien. 'He has been stiff before of course but he will be ridden out in the morning and see how he is. We will probably have to make a decision then,' he added.

The Ballydoyle trainer has already outlined the possibility that he would consider running the Gallinule Stakes winner Meath in the Derby at Epsom if for some reason Yeats could not run. O´Brien also has the Royal Lodge runner-up Moscow Ballet still entered at Epsom.

The well known physio Liz Kent has been treating Yeats almost daily since the problems arose with a tweaked muscle behind the saddle and she successfully managed to get Alamshar to the post for last year´s Irish Derby.

The news came on the day when Yeats continued on the slide in the betting amid rumours of the horse´s well-being. The unbeaten colt has drifted alarmingly, with one leading bookmaker claiming the son of Sadler´s Wells is only '50-50' to make it to the post.

He has lost his place at the head of the market to Snow Ridge, and is not even second favourite, with that honour going to North Light.

Meanwhile, Dermot Weld has not ruled out a dramatic late switch by his star three-year-old Grey Swallow to Sunday´s French Derby at Chantilly.

The colt, which finished third in the the Irish 2,000 Guineas, was taken out of Epsom on Monday and the nine-furlong Prix Jean Prat on Sunday had been touted as a likely alternative. However, Weld is determined to keep his options open in France and has left the trio of Grey Swallow, Cairdeas and Relaxed Gesture in the Prix du Jockey Club.

'We will make a decision later in the week if one of them will go for the race. I want to see what the ground will be like and how the race is making up before I make up my mind,' the Curragh trainer said yesterday.

'All three did bits of work this morning and they all went well. But I want to see how Relaxed Gesture is progressing after the little setback that kept him out of last Sunday´s Italian Derby.

'Grey Swallow is a possible too and since it only cost €200 to keep him in the Derby we decided to leave him there and keep our options open.'