Aidan O’Brien already has the first four in the betting for the Derby at Epsom and will attempt to strengthen that hand even further on Thursday when he runs Christmas Day in the Dante Stakes at York.

O'Brien has not won the Dante since 2010 and Christmas Day is of four possibles for the Coolmore team along with Action, Amadeus Mozart and Italy.

By Camelot, Christmas Day was relatively unfancied when he won the Ballysax Stakes at Leopardstown on April 12th. Ridden by Wayne Lordan, he won by half a length from stable companion Endorsement, with hot favourite Pierre Bonnard only seventh. The form of that race took a slight knock on Sunday when Endorsement and Pierre Bonnard were touched off by James J Braddock in the Leopardstown Derby Trial.

Nevertheless, Christmas Day is the 3/1 favourite for the Dante, followed by the William Haggas-trained Morshdi (10/3) and Saxon Street (5/1), trained by John and Thady Gosden.

Morshdi (by Dubawi) won a listed race at Newmarket over nine furlongs last month and was withdrawn from a Derby Trial at Chester last week due to fears about ground conditions there. The Haggas team won the Lingfield Derby Trial on Saturday with Maltese Cross.

Saxon Street (by Saxon Warrior) only made his racecourse debut on the all-weather a week before Christmas but confirmed he is well above average when he reappeared in the Blue Riband Trial at Epsom on April 28th, winning that 10-furlong listed race comfortably.

Currently a general 20/1 chance for the Derby, the Marc Chan-owned Saxon Street will now bid to follow in the footsteps of the likes of subsequent Derby hero Golden Horn (2015), plus Wings Of Desire (2016) and Roaring Lion (2018) by tasting Dante success for Clarehaven on the Knavesmire.

Thady Gosden said: “He won nicely first time at Chelmsford. It was probably a slightly unusual route to go straight to the Blue Riband, but it had been moved back a week and it was very nice ground.

“He seemed in good order with himself and did very well at Epsom, he seemed to have come forward a lot for his first start.

“All being well he will go to the Dante, that will be the plan. It will only be his third start, the experience will do him the world of good and hopefully he will run a nice race there.”

Charlie Appleby also has multiple options with Sandown second Al Zanati and 2000 Guineas runner King’s Trail both confirmed.

Andrew Balding’s Item will arrive unbeaten from his juvenile campaign.

Meanwhile there could be a stellar field assembled in the supporting Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Middleton Fillies’ Stakes, with proven Group 1 winning fillies Kalpana and Fallen Angel both amongst the eight confirmations for the 10-furlong Group 2 contest.

After a thoroughly consistent season at the highest level, Kalpana ended 2025 with a second top-level success on British Champions Day and is a welcome returnee to the track at five, while the same applies to Karl Burke’s Fallen Angel who rattled home three-straight Group 1 triumphs against her own sex before ending the year in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes.

As well as Kalpana, Balding has the option of saddling defending champion See The Fire, who wowed in this race 12 months ago and made a winning comeback in the Nottinghamshire Oaks.

Appleby’s Diamond Rain is another proven performer in a deep list of contenders, also including Ger Lyons’ Red Letter, Simon and Ed Crisford’s Dubai Gold Cup winner Fairy Glen, David Loughnane’s admirable stable star Sparks Fly and James Fanshawe’s ever-improving Sky Safari.