Has Wayne Lordan made the right decision on the Ballydoyle trio in the Oaks Trial?

You will not be surprised to hear Aidan O'Brien has dominated this particular Oaks trial in the last decade, winning it on six occasions since 2015, and he is triple-handed this time with jockey bookings pointing towards Island Hopping. 

With Ryan Moore on duty at Lingfield, Wayne Lordan is next in line and his name is located alongside the Gowran maiden winner, who returned to action in a Group 3 contest at Navan a fortnight ago and acquitted herself quite well when third to Wemightakedlongway. There should be loads of improvement to come given how much the Ballydoyle brigade have been stepping forward from their first to second starts. 

Garden Of Eden is rated 2lb above her, but neither of her outings this season screamed that she was about to win a Listed race, while stablemate Medici Venus was a length and a quarter behind Island Hopping at Navan and will likely struggle to reverse that form. 

Medici Venus has form tied in with Tamam Desert, too. She was a short-head behind the Eoghan O'Neill-trained filly in a Galway maiden in September and the weight of support that arrived for the winner that day, into 3-1 from 7-1, suggests she is well regarded. 

Dermot Weld won the first running of this Oaks Trial in 2012 with Caponata and again in 2014 with Carla Bianca and 2016 with Discipline and it is interesting to see he has wasted no time in stepping recent course-and-distance maiden winner Kalixa up in class. 

That looked like a hot contest 12 days ago and she showed a willing attitude to score by half a length from a well-touted newcomer from the Jessica Harrington stable. There could be more to come.

Henry de Bromhead is also aiming high with Hollys Graces, a daughter of Australia who won her sole start on the all-weather at Dundalk last year. That success earned her a Racing Post Rating of 81 but the from is not working out as well as connections would have hoped with the second, fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh all well beaten since. The eighth home – Sarahmae – did win a sprint handicap at Tipperary the other day but off a mark of 61. 

Island Hopping looks the percentage call in an open race. 

What they say 

Aidan O'Brien, trainer of Garden Of Eden, Island Hopping and Medici Venus
Island Hopping ran well enough at Navan and we think she stays very well. She's a good, honest filly and will get even further than this. We're running Garden Of Eden back quite quickly but we think this longer trip will suit, as will the nice ground. Ronan [Whelan] was very happy with Medici Venus at Navan. She will get further than this and hopefully she can run well.

Fozzy Stack, trainer of Gotomylovely
She won well at Gowran and I think she will appreciate the step up in trip, it should suit. It's obviously different ground here to what she won her maiden on, but she should be okay on it and it would be great if she could finish in the first three.

Dermot Weld, trainer of Kalixa
I thought she battled well to win her maiden at the the track. She's a nice, honest filly and hopefully she can give a good account of herself.

Saturday's big-race insight:

1.15 Lingfield: Aidan O'Brien has word of warning for favourite backers as Giselle begins her potential route to the Oaks 

1.35 Haydock: Superb Swinton shows the jumps is back - and there's no Willie Mullins to beat this time on a marvellous mixed Merseyside card 

2.40 Ascot: 'This will play to his strengths' - top trainers assess the Victoria Cup at Ascot 

3.00 Lingfield: Aidan O'Brien poised to sweep another Derby trial - but British trainer says there is 'plenty to like' about his contender 

3.15 Ascot: An above-average running of a competitive handicap - so can the unbeaten favourite be taken on? 

3.35 Lingfield: Can Great Generation give weight all round to repeat last year's Group 3 success? 

Subscribe to Racing Post + Ultimate now