Smullen lands plum ride on Cracksman after Dettori injury


Dual Irish Derby winner Pat Smullen is relishing the opportunity to bid for a third aboard Cracksman.
Smullen replaces the injured Frankie Dettori in Sunday’s Classic at the Curragh.
The Frankel colt was favourite to give trainer John Gosden and owner-breeder Anthony Oppenheimer victory in the Epsom Derby earlier in the month but had to make do with a close-up third behind Coolmore’s Wings Of Eagles.
“It’s a brilliant ride to pick up and I’m really looking forward to Saturday,” Smullen told Press Association Sport.
“He ran a great race at Epsom. At the end of the day Wings Of Eagles is the Epsom Derby winner and you can’t take that away from him, but this is a different track on a different day and I’ll be going into the race very positive.
“The Irish Derby is a huge race. I’ve been lucky enough to win it twice and I’d love to win for a third time on Saturday.”
Smullen’s wins have come aboard Grey Swallow in 2004 and Harzand 12 months ago.
Cracksman and Wings Of Eagles are among 12 colts still in contention following the confirmation stage.
Wings Of Eagles is one of eight possible runners for O’Brien along with Capri, Douglas Macarthur, Finn McCool, Spanish Steps, Taj Mahal, The Anvil and Venice Beach.
The Jim Bolger-trained Dubai Sand and Grandee from Jessica Harrington’s stable make up the home team.
The field is completed by the Andre Fabre-trained French Derby runner-up Waldgeist.
Ladbrokes make Wings Of Eagles the marginal favourite at 2-1, with Cracksman second-best at 9-4.
You may also like
Join the Betting Planet team!
Are you passionate about sports betting? Tipsters and news writers required TODAY!
Experienced preferred but not essential. (All apps considered).
View Careers at Race Media

Top Online Casinos
Latest Betting News
- Alabama Indian tribe launches pro-gambling ad campaign
- Gov Beshear signs measure to ban gaming machines in Kentucky
- Massachusetts receives $300k sports betting revenue for February
- Senate committee approves Kentucky sports betting bill
- New York will not budge on 51% tax rate for sports betting sites
- German gambling regulator issues fines for breaching advertising
- UFC 286 main card betting preview & best bets – Saturday 18/3/23
- Edwards v Usman UFC 286 preview & best bets – March 18, 2023
- Another Kentucky sports betting bill heads to Senate
- Champions League R16 betting picks & specials – March 14-15
Casino Guides
- Safest online casino jurisdictions
- How to guides
- How to win at pokies
- How to play online pokies
- PaysafeCard online casino deposits
- MasterCard Online Casinos
- Online Casinos Accepting POLi
- 32Red Casino Review
- All Slots Casino Review
- Boombet Casino review
- Horse racing games at casinos
- Credit card deposits at online casinos
- Films about blackjack
- Live dealer casinos
- How to play live dealer blackjack party
- Online Blackjack
- Top online casinos 2022
- Online casino deposits
- MasterCard Online Casinos
- Online Casinos Accepting POLi
- PaysafeCard online casino deposits
- Online slots
- Playing Pai Gow Poker on the Internet
- Online keno
- Online poker
- Online poker tournament structures
- Real money online roulette 2022
- Online multi-wheel roulette – what is it?
- How to play online scratch cards in 2020
- Sit & Go online poker tournaments
- Skrill e-wallet deposits at online casinos
- Visa online casino deposits
Sports Betting Guides
Casino Games
Deposits & Withdrawals
Football
Basketball
Top Country Betting sites
- Angola
- Antigua and Barbuda
- Armenia
- Australia
- Azerbaijan
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Belize
- Brazil
- Canada
- Dominican Republic
- Germany
- Ghana
- Grenada
- India
- Indonesia
- Italy
- Kenya
- Malaysia
- Malta
- Ireland
- Netherlands
- New Zealand
- Nigeria
- Norway
- Philippines
- Singapore
- South Africa
- Turkey
- Uganda
- Ukraine
- United Kingdom
- Vietnam
- Zambia
- Zimbabwe