The second entry stage provides connections who did not enter at the initial yearling stage the opportunity to add horses to the premier Classic at a cost of £8,000. The third and final opportunity to enter the Investec Derby comes at the supplementary entry stage on Monday, May 28, when the fee rises to £75,000.

Irish trainer John Oxx boasts an enviable record in the Investec Derby. The three runners he has saddled in the Classic have resulted in two victories (Sinndar in 2000 and Sea The Stars in 2009), as well as a third (Alamshar in 2003).

The County Kildare trainer has six entries currently engaged in this year's renewal including Akeed Mofeed, who was added at this week's second entry stage. Owned by Jaber Abdullah, the Dubawi colt ran three times in Ireland last season which included a victory over seven furlongs in a Leopardstown maiden as well as a close second in the Group Two Beresford Stakes over a mile at the Curragh. Akeed Mofeed is 12/1 second favourite for the Investec Derby with William Hill, Official Betting Partner of the 2012 Investec Derby Festival.

Oxx revealed: "The Investec Derby is certainly on Akeed Mofeed's radar.

"It's early days yet - we'll have to get him on the track first and go from there - but it had always been the plan to put him in at the second entry stage.

"Everything has gone well with him over the winter. He has done particularly well and everything continued well right through the spring time. He has been working away and is not too far from his first run.

"He has always worked well, he's always looked a nice horse and he has shown us plenty at home so when he raced we expected him to do well.

"We haven't come to a decision about where he is going to start this season, but we would be leaning towards a 2000 Guineas trial. We want to start him off at a mile and give him a chance at that trip first and then we'll think about the QIPCO 2000 Guineas. He has shown a bit of speed all right, but we will have to put it to the racecourse test.

"He also has the Derrinstown Derby Trial as an option here at Leopardstown which would be a good follow up from the 2000 Guineas trial. You never know if they will get the Investec Derby trip until the day as there is always a doubt until they are put to the test."

David Lanigan, training from a new yard in Lambourn this season, has yet to have a runner in the Investec Derby but just doubled his entries to two in 2012 including the unbeaten Main Sequence, who was entered at the second entry stage. Owned by the Niarchos Family, the Aldebaran colt caused a 50/1 shock when winning on debut at Yarmouth over a mile in September before following up with an impressive victory in a nine-furlong nursery at Newmarket the following month. He is currently 50/1 with William Hill.

Lanigan commented: "We have entered Main Sequence in the Investec Derby just to keep our options open. He has done well from two to three, he has strengthened up and done physically well over the winter. The Niarchos family are keen to have him in there as an option, but we will just have to see how we get on.

"He is a horse I have always liked but, to be brutally honest, on his homework I thought he would run a nice race on debut and finish in the first four and he went and won it. He does his homework all right, but he is not a horse who is exuberant in his work - he is just workmanlike at home.

"Obviously, on his second start you could take a lot more out of that than anything else and that is why we wanted to get him out again. We were on a fact-finding mission that day and we wanted to see where we were with him. It was a competitive nursery, so he couldn't have done it any easier than he did it that day. He will certainly get further and we will just see how he comes on, but it was certainly encouraging to see him win like that, especially with the horses in behind him as it gives you a line to go on.

"The handicapper put him on a mark of 89 after that - we will just have to see how he is and where we go. The horse will tell us when he is ready and we will try and get him out within the next three weeks. I will sit down with the owners and discuss a plan for him depending on what races there are to go for.

"On his homework and the way he won last year - he was going away at the end - you would think a mile and a quarter would have suited him then. There is plenty of stamina on the dam's side and to be honest my own gut feeling is that he won't have any problem getting the mile and a half this year."

Godolphin trainer Mahmood Al Zarooni is responsible for two of the second entries - Mandaean and Swedish Sailor. The duo are both 25/1 chances with William Hill. Mandaean won both his starts in France last year, when he was trained by Andre Fabre, culminating with a victory in the final Group One race of the European season, the Criterium de Saint-Cloud in November. Swedish Sailor was an impressive victor on his only start, taking a mile in maiden at Yarmouth.

The fifth second entry is the Aga Khan-owned Kesampour. Trained in France by Mikel Delzangles, the King's Best colt is unbeaten in three starts, most recently registering a comfortable victory in an 11-furlong Listed contest at Saint-Cloud on April 1. He is a 25/1 chance with William Hill, Official Betting Partner of the 2012 Investec Derby Festival.

The next scratchings deadline for the Investec Derby is on Friday, May 18, at the conclusion of the trials' season.

Investec Derby - William Hill bet: 9/4 Camelot, 12/1 Akeed Mofeed, 16/1 Born To Sea, Parish Hall, Top Offer, 20/1 Encke, 25/1 Astrology, Bonfire, David Livingston, Fencing, Imperial Monarch, Kesampour, Mandaean, Mighty Ambition, Swedish Sailor, 33/1 Call To Battle, Ektihaam, Furner's Green, Jungle Beat, Noble Mission, Wrotham Heath, 40/1 Continuum, 50/1 Commitment, Main Sequence, Rougemont (EW 1/4 1,2,3)

William Hill spokeswoman Lucy Rhodes said: "Camelot was a short-priced favourite after his impressive display in the Racing Post Trophy and, with his price continuing to contract throughout the winter months, punters clearly don't seem concerned about another potential St Nicholas Abbey situation.

"However, there is a long way to go, with numerous key trials en-route to Investec Derby glory, where some exciting challengers will undoubtedly spring to prominence."