Dee Ex Bee faces O'Brien foursome in Irish Derby

They have walked willingly into a cage of lions, the connections of the England-based colt Dee Ex Bee, and we will see how they look coming out.

Twelve times, starting in 1997 with Desert King, Aidan O’Brien has trained the Irish Derby winner. He has four in Saturday’s edition of the Group 1 race at The Curragh, including the high-level colt Saxon Warrior, but Dee Ex Bee’s connections bypassed a start last week at Royal Ascot to travel to Ireland and take on the O’Brien quartet, and they might be rewarded for their boldness.

Saxon Warrior was a very good 2-year-old and won the English 2000 Guineas in his first start at 3, but no sooner had he cemented rock star status than he finished fourth as favorite in the Epsom Derby. Who was second in that race, three lengths ahead of Saxon Warrior? That was Dee Ex Bee, yet it is Saxon Warrior who as of Thursday afternoon was the antepost favorite for the Irish Derby.

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Saxon Warrior had given the impression that he won the Guineas over a mile despite the distance rather than because of it, but he was the one who appeared one-paced at the end of the 1 1/2-mile Epsom Derby, won well enough by the Godolphin colt, Masar. It was Dee Ex Bee who stayed better at Epsom and right back at 1 1/2 miles on Saturday, he might well outdo Saxon Warrior again. Silvestre de Sousa rides Dee Ex Bee for trainer Mark Johnston, and Dee Ex Bee, a son of Farrh and the Seeking the Gold mare, Dubai Surprise, could find the winner’s circle for the first time at age 3.

O’Brien, who won every Irish Derby from 2006 through 2012, also sends out Delano Roosevelt, Rostropovich, and The Pentagon. All are at least 20-1 with English bookmakers – and any of them could make things difficult for a main contender like Dee Ex Bee.

Third choice in the antepost betting is Old Persian, who has the same connections – Godolphin, trainer Charlie Appleby, and jockey William Buick – as Masar while so far lacking Masar’s obvious quality.

Post time for the race is 12:15 a.m. Eastern. The going is expected to be good to firm.