Maybe bids to bounce back in Oaks

Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith and Susan Magnier's Maybe failed to fire on all

cylinders when losing her unbeaten tag in last month's Group 1 One Thousand

Guineas at Newmarket -- her first start since annexing August's Group 1 Moyglare

Stud S. at The Curragh -- but she can follow the stable's lead when lining up

for Friday's Group 1 Oaks at Epsom.

She was one of the main sufferers when Gray Pearl's fatal injury caused a

significant delay to proceedings at Newmarket, but stablemate Power bounced back

from his Rowley Mile reverse to garner last week's Group 1 Irish Two Thousand

Guineas, and confidence is high she can repeat the dose stepped up a half mile

for this comeback.

"The ground was a bit on the slow side, but we were very happy with her run

in the Guineas," commented trainer Aidan O'Brien. "It was her first run of the

year and perhaps she labored a little bit through the race, but she was in the

stalls a long time and lots of things happened. She is by Galileo and has a fast

pedigree so a mile and a half is unknown until we do it. She's a big and

powerful filly, she always was, but is very well balanced. It's all about

balance."

O'Brien, who registered the last of his three Oaks successes with Alexandrova

in 2006, is six-handed in this quest for a fourth renewal. In addition to Maybe,

he also saddles Kissed, Twirl, Betterbetterbetter, Devotion and Was.

Kissed, who is a three-quarter sister to last year's Group 1 Derby hero Pour

Moi, will run in the Derrick Smith colors only if the ground is deemed suitable.

She stepped up from an eye-catching maiden score at Navan in October when making

a hugely impressive seasonal return in April's listed Salsabil Stakes back at

the County Meath track last time.

Betterbetterbetter loomed large and looked likely to bag last month's listed

Cheshire Oaks, but was collared late to finish second at the Roodeye circuit.

O'Brien thinks a change of plan might benefit Roisin Henry and Susan Magnier's

bay here.

"Betterbetterbetter ran a good race at Chester and (jockey) Joseph (O'Brien)

said, if he was riding her again, he might delay her challenge."

Colm O'Donoghue steps in for the ride with that option. Twirl gave plenty,

but was delivered a knockout blow by the smooth-traveling The Fugue when

runner-up in last month's Group 3 Musidora Stakes at York. O'Brien has indicated

she will relish stepping up to the 1 1/2-mile trip.

Lady Lloyd-Webber's The Fugue was pitched in at the deep end, following an

October maiden score at Newmarket, and emerged with great credit by finishing

fourth in the One Thousand Guineas back at the Rowley Mile on seasonal debut.

She flourished from there and toyed with Twirl in the Musidora before unleashing

a decisive kick, and continues on the right path according to William Buick.

"I'm going into the race with a lot of confidence because The Fugue has every

box ticked," Buick blogged. "From the first time I sat on her I realized she had

class, it was just a matter of how much. The One Thousand Guineas was just her

second run and she had a bad trip that day, getting struck into early on. It was

a tribute to the Clarehaven team that she came back so well at York.

"The Guineas had brought her on, but the step up to 10 furlongs in the

Musidora played to her strengths, and she quickened to win like a class filly. I

wanted to make sure she had the easiest time possible and that the race would

bring her further forward for the Oaks, and that's certainly the case. I don't

have any serious concerns for the trip and there's no reason to think she won't

stay the distance. She's a very agile filly so she should handle the track as

well as anything else in the field."

Other threats include the respective top two from the Lingfield Oaks Trial,

Vow and Colima, as well as Godolphin's supplementary entry Kailani.

Hughie Morrison is set to saddle two runners in Shirocco Star and Coquet, who is part-owned by his aunt

the Honorable Mary Morrison, a Lady-In-Waiting to The Queen for more than 50

years.

"Maybe we are being a bit brave with both of them, but there is only one

Oaks to go for and that is tomorrow at Epsom," Morrison said.

"It annoys me when people use the term 'Epsom Derby' and 'Epsom Oaks'. 'The

Derby' and ''The Oaks' automatically means the races run at Epsom."