The market for the Epsom Derby has been thrown into confusion with uncertainty surrounding long time favourite St Nicholas Abbey.Trainer Aidan O'Brien issued a statement on Friday the colt had disappointed jockey Johnny Murtagh in a gallop.Stablemate Jan Vermeer replaced him at the head of the betting but with impressive trial winners Cape Blanco and Midas Touch also in the mix, O'Brien has urged punters to wait until final running plans are confirmed.On Saturday, O'Brien told Channel 4's The Mo

The market for the Epsom Derby has been thrown into confusion with uncertainty surrounding long time favourite St Nicholas Abbey.

Trainer Aidan O'Brien issued a statement on Friday the colt had disappointed jockey Johnny Murtagh in a gallop.

Stablemate Jan Vermeer replaced him at the head of the betting but with impressive trial winners Cape Blanco and Midas Touch also in the mix, O'Brien has urged punters to wait until final running plans are confirmed.

On Saturday, O'Brien told Channel 4's The Morning Line St Nicholas Abbey had worked well, just not as well as usual.

"St Nicholas Abbey worked with Midas Touch yesterday and worked as well as him but that was the unusual thing, normally St Nicholas Abbey works head and shoulders above everything," O'Brien said.

"He did a piece of work on Tuesday and Johnny was over the moon with him but he was a little bit disappointed yesterday morning so we decided to let everybody know.

"The problem with training horses is that everyone is different, there is no rule. His work was good, he worked very well.

"Colm (O'Donoghue) rode Midas Touch and he thought he had improved a lot from Leopardstown so that's also there but usually St Nicholas Abbey is head and shoulders above everything, he's the most incredible worker you've ever seen.

"He wasn't disappointing, just not as scintillating as he usually is.

"There is always a possibility that any horse wouldn't run, everything has to be right for them to run in a race like that so you could never say never.

"I think we'll make a final decision in the middle of the week."

"But it's all up in the air and I would say to everybody to just wait and see because we wouldn't want to run him unless we were very happy with him."