Racing: Beat All still a Derby doubt

BEAT ALL, one of the Derby favourites, was still under a cloud yesterday after an injury scare. The colt, trained by Sir Michael Stoute, hurt a foot on the Newmarket gallops on Friday and although he made overnight improvement he was too lame to work yesterday morning. Stoute was typically guarded in his bulletin on the three-year-old's condition but promised more news tomorrow. "There is a little improvement in Beat All's condition this morning," he said. "I will issue another statement on Monday when I will be in a position to be more expansive."

The injury to Beat All, who has not run since he won on his seasonal debut at Newmarket in April but who has maintained his position in the ante-post market with some sparkling homework, is not thought to be serious. But even a minor hold-up with the big race so close is unwelcome and the bookmaker reaction was to ease him in price (William Hill went 8-1) or offer him with the "with a run" caveat (Coral, at 4-1).

The Godolphin second string Adair, who has yet to race this season, did not impress in his work on the Watered Gallop in Newmarket yesterday and, although no final decision has been made, Frankie Dettori is likely to be on Dubai Millennium. "The ground was a bit loose and he couldn't really get a handle on it," Simon Crisford, the team's racing manager, said, "but we'd have liked to have seen him go better. He didn't sparkle."

The European Derby season gets under way today in Rome where four from Britain, all with form links to Epsom contenders, challenge for the Italian version. Godolphin, winners last year with Central Park, send Mukhalif (Frankie Dettori), runner-up to Beat All at Newmarket and to Zaajer at York.

John Dunlop sends Lightning Arrow (Richard Quinn) and Sir Michael Stoute Iscan (Kieren Fallon), the pair who finished third and fourth behind the demoted Housemaster in the Chester Vase. The Paul Cole-trained Bombard (Jimmy Fortune), third to Oath in the Dee Stakes, completes the raiding party for the Group One race.

At Kempton yesterday the Luca Cumani-trained Kalanisi, a stablemate of Daliapour, made it three from three and booked his ticket to the St James's Palace Stakes, with a gritty performance in the Heron Stakes. Despite losing a front shoe on the home turn, the inexperienced Doyoun colt dug deep in the final quarter-mile under the urgings of Gerald Mosse to catch Mensa and beat him a head. The much-hyped Killer Instinct once again disappointed in fourth place.

At Royal Ascot, Kalanisi may meet Debbie's Warning, who broke his maiden over the same sharp mile earlier in the afternoon at the fourth time of asking. The son of Warning, from Kamil Mahdi's yard, had previously finished third to Compton Admiral in the Craven Stakes and a close seventh in the 2,000 Guineas.

As the build-up to Epsom gets under way 16 fillies stood their ground at yesterday's five-day entry stage for Friday's Oaks and 11 for the Coronation Cup, including Royal Anthem, Dream Well, Silver Patriarch and Borgia, earlier the same afternoon. The Derby five-day declarations will be made tomorrow.