Weld and O'Brien plan double bids

Dermot Weld and Aidan O'Brien, already stretching clear at the top of the trainers' table, are likely to be aiming two barrels each at Saturday week's Entenmann's Irish 2,000 Guineas.

O'Brien is set to run Saffron Waldon and the Newmarket failure, Orpen, in the first Irish classic of the season, while Weld yesterday ruled Mus-If out of Sunday's French Guineas.

"Mus-If is now most likely to run in the Irish 2,000 Guineas along with Major Force," said Weld, whose sparkling start to the season has been highlighted by landing all three Group events run so far in Ireland.

Both trainers have won the Irish 2,000 Guineas once before, Weld with Flash Of Steel in 1986 and O'Brien in 1997 with Desert King.

Orpen, who flopped in the English Guineas after pulling much too hard in the early stages, was yesterday described as a "possible" for the Curragh race. Should he run, he will get another crack at the Newmarket winner, Island Sands, who is planned to be supplemented for the race next week.

Before that, O'Brien will travel to Longchamp on Sunday for the French 1,000 Guineas with Aspen Leaves.

"She looks like a runner at this stage and she has been going nicely in her work," said O'Brien, whose hopes of running Lavery in the French 2,000 could be scuppered by the weather. "He needs good or good to firm ground to run and I believe it's soft over there at the moment," he added.

Sunday week's Irish 1,000 Guineas is likely to feature the other Newmarket victor, Wince, who will be endeavouring to give champion jockey Kieren Fallon a first Irish classic success.

The Ballydoyle challenge for that race will include Carambola, and Noel Meade is aiming the Leopardstown Trial winner, Show Me The Money, at the race. However, John Oxx will be hoping that the Moyglare winner, Edabiya, can crank up a relatively slow start to the season for him on her seasonal debut.

"She is in great form and will go straight for the Guineas. A lot depends on her as she looks the only real prospect we have for this year," said Oxx, who won the 1,000 in 1995 with Ridgewood Pearl. Godolphin have confirmed that last year's Rogers Gold Cup winner, Daylami, will return for another crack at the 10-furlong contest, which has now been upgraded to Group One status. The grey horse went on to win the Man O'War Stakes at Belmont Park last autumn.

Belmont is still on Dermot Weld's mind for Sunday's Leopardstown winner, Port Bayou, who is reported to have come out of that "in great form".

Weld said: "We are still thinking positive about the Belmont Stakes. We will wait and see what happens in the Preakness because so much depends on what happens there.

Yesterday's meeting at Killarney was abandoned because the course was waterlogged.