Big weekend for Oisin Murphy with leading chances at Belmont Park and Deauville

Oisin Murphy will bid for a big-race double with a difference this weekend with leading chances in the Belmont Derby in New York on Saturday and at Deauville a day later.

The three-time champion jockey will ride at Belmont Park for the first time and is set to partner The Foxes, who steps down to a mile and a quarter after finishing fifth in the Derby.

He will then head to Deauville on Sunday, when he steps in for the suspended Frankie Dettori on Chaldean in the Group 1 Haras d'Etreham Prix Jean Prat.

"I'm looking forward to Belmont," said Murphy. "The Foxes came out of the Derby well and the form was franked by the likes of Waipiro, King Of Steel and Auguste Rodin.

"He seems to have settled well since travelling over to the US. We're drawn in stall 11 of 11, which obviously isn't ideal, but we'll do our best to overcome it."

Oisin Murphy alongside The Foxes after his success at YorkCredit: Edward Whitaker

Murphy also partners Aspen Grove in the Grade 1 Fasig-Tipton Belmont Oaks for Fozzy Stack. She finished down the field in the Irish 1,000 Guineas on her most recent start.

The Foxes is trained by Andrew Balding, who is sending 2,000 Guineas winner Chaldean to Deauville after he finished runner-up to Paddington in the St James's Palace Stakes.

Murphy will partner the three-year-old for the first time in a race after being chosen to stand in for Dettori, who picked up a nine-day ban for careless riding at Royal Ascot.

"Hopefully I'll have a few rides at Deauville on Sunday," said Murphy. "It's a track I'm familiar with. I exercised Chaldean this morning and he seems well. Everyone is happy with him.

"He's a 2,000 Guineas winner, so it's great to pick up the ride on a horse like him. Andrew sent out five winners last Saturday so the horses seem to be in really good form."

'There's some valuable prize-money around the world for a horse like him'

The Foxes won the Dante on his penultimate start and drops back to a mile and two furlongs after finishing eight-and-a-quarter lengths behind Auguste Rodin at Epsom.

Alastair Donald, racing manager to owners King Power, believes The Foxes did not stay the trip and is targeting a number of big international prizes with the three-year-old.

"His options were pretty much the Eclipse or the Belmont Derby," he said. "He was probably going to be around 10-1 taking on his elders in the Eclipse, whereas he's one of the favourites at Belmont.

"It's an equally valuable race and we can be pretty sure he's going to get the fast ground he needs. We feel his style of racing will suit the US and his turn of foot can help him overcome his post position.

"The time of the race worked well with the Derby. A lot of horses who ran at Epsom ran well at Royal Ascot on their next start but it can be difficult to back up. I think it will turn out to be a good Derby."

The options are open for The Foxes after Belmont, and Donald added: "He was the last horse off the bridle when second in the Craven so we wouldn't rule out dropping back to a mile in the future.

"If he wins, we've got the option of the Saratoga Derby, which is a qualifier for the Cox Plate. He could have lots of fun global targets. There's valuable prize-money all around the world for a horse like him."

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