New Approach looks set to miss Epsom

New Approach, as short as 3-1 favourite with Ladbrokes for the Derby, is unlikely to go to the race on June 7.

His Irish trainer Jim Bolger dropped the bombshell this morning, revealing that his unbeaten colt would most likely head to the Irish 2,000 Guineas and the Irish Derby after running in the 200th renewal of the English 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket early next month.

Sheik Mohammed, who purchased New Approach outright last year, has left Bolger to decide what route the colt will take this summer.

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The trainer said: "He's New Approach, he doesn't have to go anywhere. His stallion future is guaranteed and I do not believe going to Epsom does anything for him as a prospective stallion."

New Approach rubber-stamped his credentials for the Classics by taking the Dewhurst Stakes over seven furlongs at Newmarket last October, his fifth successive win on the trot. He is as short as 9-4 for the 2,000 Guineas.

In his absence, the Henry Cecil-trained Twice Over, a gutsy winner of the Craven Stakes at Newmarket last week, is the likely favourite for Epsom.