Seven new names have been added to the Vodafone Derby at this week's £8,000 second-entry stage, it was announced today.
Dermot Weld provides the sole Irish addition with the highly regarded Media Puzzle, an impressive winner of a Curragh maiden last weekend.
Media Puzzle has pleased Weld since his victory at the Curragh.
'He's been in great form,' Weld said. 'He was impressive at the Curragh but that was only a maiden and it's early days yet.
'He'll run in the Derrinstown Derby Trial at Leopardstown (May 14th) next - Derby horses have done well in that over the years - and then we'll know where we stand with him.'
Godolphin account for two of them - Kentucky Derby hope China Visit and the ex-Andre Fabre-trained River's Curtain - to bring the Dubai operation's number of entries up to 24 of the 178 engaged in the Epsom Classic.
Trainer Peter Harris, who has a leading Sagitta 2000 Guineas contender in Primo Valentino, also has a Derby candidate in Bow Strada, a Rainbow Quest colt who won both his starts last season.
Tantalus, who won a maiden in some style at Doncaster's Lincoln meeting, represents Barry Hills and owner Khaled Abdulla while Ekraar, a runner in tomorrow's Lane's End Greenham Stakes at Newbury, has been entered by owner Hamdan Al Maktoum and trainer Marcus Tregoning.
The Richard Hannon-trained Mana-Mou Bay won the Listed Washington Singer Stakes at Newbury last August, a race that Lammtarra took en route to Epsom glory in 1995.
Shaamit in 1996 is the only horse to date to have won the Derby after being entered at the second-entry stage, although last year's six additional entries included subsequent Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Montjeu, who bypassed Epsom in favour of the French Derby, in which he was successful.
Andrew Cooper, group racing manager at United Racecourses, said today: "All of the seven horses added to the Vodafone Derby come with first-class credentials and add spice to what is already a wide-open and fascinating field.
"We would remind owners and trainers who have not entered at the yearling stage or this second-entry stage that there is one final opportunity to be supplemented to the £1 million Vodafone Derby field on June 3RD (at a cost of £75.000), seven days before the race."
The seven additional entries are: Bow Strada (trained by Peter Harris), China Visit (Saeed bin Suroor), Ekraar (Marcus Tregoning), Media Puzzle (Dermot Weld, Ireland), Mana-Mou Bay (Richard Hannon), River's Captain (bin Suroor) and Tantalus (Barry Hills).
