2025 Leopardstown & Limerick Sunday Tips – DS
2025 Leopardstown & Limerick Sunday Tips
We managed to nick two places on St Stephens Day with Irish Panther and Banbridge. Unfortunately, our e/w lucky 15 selections came up dry on Saturday, though Monbeg Genius ran a cracker to be fair. Dave is hoping to nail a winner or two tomorrow, his 2025 Leopardstown & Limerick Sunday Tips are below.
1.55 Leopardstown – Christmas Hurdle (Grade 1)
The first Grade 1 of the day at Leopardstown is over 3m and the bookmakers essentially make it a match between the Hatton’s Grace 1-2 Teahupoo and Ballyburn. The latter horse is favoured to turn that form around upped to 3m but you’d be a brave person to be taking on any Elliott horse now given the form of the stable.
Neither of those horses are any use to us and I am going to take a chance on Rocky’s Diamond. We backed this horse e/w in this last year and he landed the place money in third at 66/1. He followed that up with a very respectable fourth in the Stayers’ at Cheltenham before disappointing at Punchestown.
The son of Altruistic made a bright start to this season, winning a beginners’ chase at Galway. He’s been beaten twice since in that sphere so Declan Queally has decided to go back over hurdles.
The likelihood is that Rocky’s Diamond will come up short in terms of winning this but he is more than capable of placing if he runs to his best and the first time visor might just perk him up. At odds of 25/1, he is worth chancing e/w for small stakes, hopefully he can replicate what Carrigmoornaspruce did here yesterday and run into a place.
2025 Leopardstown & Limerick Sunday Tip: Rocky’s Diamond e/w @ 25/1 nb
2.30 Leopardstown – Savills Chase (Grade 1)
I put up Affordale Fury for our festive e/w lucky 15 but unfortunately, none of the other three selections managed to place. He has shortened up a bit in the betting and I think he still has an e/w squeak.
Yes, he’s up against the Lord of Leopardstown Galopin Des Champs and the Gold Cup winner Inothewayurthinkin but bar those two, I wouldn’t be running scared of any of the rest of them.
Lecky Watson, who was simply out for an afternoon stroll when we bet him in the John Durkan, might take a big step forward now he is back up to a more suitable trip. He will again be ridden by Sean O’Keefe and if he is there to do his best, I can see him outrunning his odds of 20/1.
The booking of Harry Coben for Champ Kiely is an intriguing move and he ran out a ready winner on his last start at 3m+ at Punchestown, beating Ballyburn by over 6l. However, I am going to stick with my original selection Affordale Fury and back him again at odds of 22/1. Fingers crossed he runs a nice race and sneaks into the money.
2025 Leopardstown & Limerick Sunday Tip: Affordale Fury e/w @ 22/1
3.05 Leopardstown – Pertemps Handicap Qualifier (140 = 11st 12lb)
Joseph O’Brien’s horses have mostly run exceptionally well during this festive period and I think Jordans is a fascinating runner for him here. Long-term followers will remember me tipping this horse up for the Grade 1 novice chase at Aintree back in April. He ran a huge race to land the place money behind Caldwell Potter and I was expecting him to be dining at the top table over fences this season.
This horse was actually on my radar for the King George but connections have clearly decided that they are going to try to exploit his 18lb lower hurdles mark this season. Given that he is still only a 6yo, it probably makes sense as there will be plenty of time for him to try his hand at chasing again next season.
I’d imagine that the plan is to try to get him into the Pertemps final at Cheltenham in March. His current rating of 132 would definitely get him a run, if he can qualify, so he should certainly be trying to get into the first four this afternoon. He has had a pipe opener at Fairyhouse over 2m4f and this trip will suit a lot better. At odds of 14/1, Jordans is the each way selection.
2025 Leopardstown & Limerick Sunday Tip: Jordans e/w @ 14/1 (6 places) NAP
3.25 Limerick – D Pack Handicap Hurdle (0-100)
It’s been a while since I’ve tipped up a horse in a 0-100 handicap on this blog, but here we are. To add to the novelty, the horse I am tipping up has a record of 0-18 over hurdles and he is trained by a handler that hasn’t had a win over jumps in almost 3500 days. So, as you can imagine, this is not one for maximum stakes.
The horse that I like here is the John Neilan trained Winter Carnival. I’ve been keeping an eye on this horse ever since his maiden hurdle runs at this venue back in 2022. Those efforts both suggested he could win races but it hasn’t yet materialised. Maybe Sunday can finally be the day.
In January earlier this year Winter Carnival went closer than he ever has done when he was beaten a length into third over this C&D off 79. Since then he has run three times. He was unplaced on unsuitable ground at Ballinrobe in April, then after a break he unseated at Galway. On his last start at Clonmel he was given a strange ride (taken very wide) but he wasn’t beaten that far over an inadequate 2m3f (heavy).
My hope is that was a final prep run for this meeting and a return to the venue where all his best efforts have come. Heavy ground is fine and he is 4lb lower than when third here in January. Now, maybe this horse is destined to never win a race and if that’s the case, so be it. However, he is certainly capable of running on late into a place and at 25/1, he is worth taking a punt on e/w.
