Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Preview and Tips – DS
Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips
It is wet in Ireland. Very wet. We had to make do with a 125s place on Saturday but the rest of the day was a disaster. The ground is going to be testing at the Curragh and that won’t suit many fancied horses. Hopefully we can find a couple of Mudlovers that have slipped under the radar. Check out Dave Stevos’ Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips below.
1.15 – Bold Lad Handicap (Premier)
I am all over Downforce for this race after the rain. You could set your watch by Willie McCreery’s charge at the Curragh on heavy ground. In March of last year he won over 5f here off 101, scoring by 2.75L on soft/heavy. He was off 104 his only try on similar ground since and since that run, I think McCreery has been getting him handicapped. He has already run two crackers here this season on yielding.
The first one was in March when beat just 4.5L under an inexperienced claimer. I have no doubt he could have finished a lot closer. On the second occasion he was dropped out and finished off very nicely under Nathan Crosse. In that contest he was beat 4.25L off 96. He was 1.25L behind Big Gossey and he is now 18lbs better off with that rival!
Since then he ran over 7f at Galway, definitely not his bag, and over 6f on good here. The handicapper dropped him 6lbs for that last run and with Nathan Crosse’s claim he is in off effectively 82 here. I am convinced this 10yo still has plenty of ability, hopefully he bounces out from stall 20 and makes all. At 40/1, Downforce is the e/w NAP.
Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips: Downforce e/w @ 40/1 (6 Places) NAP
1.50 – Blandford Stakes (Group 2)
La Petite Coco is the jolly here at 11/8 and to be honest, she looks rock solid. She’ll be right at home on this ground and she lost no caste in defeat at York behind Alpinista last time out. Dropping in Grade, this filly is going to be tough to topple. Twomey also runs Rumbles Of Thunder, the mount of Dusty Foley. She is a talented filly by Night Of Thunder who landed a G3 last time. I’m not sure she’ll enjoy this ground too much though.
One that may be overpriced on this ground is Seisai. Trained by Joseph O’Brien, this 3yo filly ran poorly in a G3 here last time over 9f. However, she was unfortunate not to win on her last try at 10f at Naas. It was good ground that day and only for traffic problems, she would have won that G2. She had Rumbles of Thunder and One For Bobby behind when 2nd in another G2 behind Lily Pond in July, yet she is 50/1 and they are 10s and 22s respectively.
Soft Ground
Last year this filly landed her first stakes race on soft in a Listed heat in Tipperary (runner up rated 102). The only other occasion she got soft was in the Debutante last season and she stayed on very well to almost snatch 3rd. She hasn’t raced on soft ground since and two of her soft ground winning dam’s four winning half siblings won on heavy so hopefully, it might bring out the best in her.
This filly is from a very good family, her dam being a half sister to Pyledriver’s dam. She holds an entry over 12f in the Champion Fillies and Mares at Ascot so presumably Joseph thinks a bit of her. 12f could end up her best trip but stamina will be required today and hopefully Seisai can stay on late to challenge for honours at 50/1.
Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips: Seisai e/w @ 50/1 (4 places B365)
2.25 – Flying Five Stakes (Group 1)
Even if the rain doesn’t come, surely it’ll be too soft for Romantic Proposal. She’s a brilliant, fast mare on nice ground but these conditions are not to her liking. A Case Of You, on the other hand, will relish the muck. Of the ones near the head of the market, he probably makes most appeal. He doesn’t need it heavy but his form figures on soft or worse read 111310. He goes well fresh and Ado is bullish.
My selection for Haydock’s Sprint Cup, Castle Star, was pulled on account of the hard ground. Now, the rain has come and he’ll be in his element on this ground at the Curragh. He has had cut for both his wins and when he won a G3 here in May 2021, it was soft/heavy. He has G1 form in the book, having finished 2nd in the Middle Park last year and it looked like the run was badly needed on his comeback here behind Ladies Church. On this ground he is capable of turning that form around and at 14/1, Castle Star is worth backing e/w.
Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips: Castle Star e/w @ 14/1 (5 places B365)
3.00 – Moyglare Stud Stakes (Group 1)
Statuette is a beast of a filly who will be hard to beat if she handles the ground. She won her maiden on yielding but her three stakes’ wins came on much quicker ground. She wasn’t exactly pulling clear on her first try over 7f here last time and it has to be a worry on this easier surface. It’ll take a lot of getting and she could be vulnerable in the closing stages. If she does manage to win, we may have a superstar on our hands.
Just like in the Ingabelle yesterday, testing ground form is scarce. Yielding to soft is the worst any of the runners have encountered, and that was the outsider, La Dolce Vita. She won that day, her only win to date, and maybe she could outrun her odds. She probably didn’t get home last time over a mile and this trip/ground could be her optimum. We managed to nick a place at huge odds in the Juvenile race yesterday, hopefully lightning can strike twice. La Dolce Vita is the e/w pick for small stakes at 66/1.
Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips: La Dolce Vita e/w @ 66/1
3.35 – National Stakes (Group 1)
Only six runners and a race I’ll be swerving. Aesop’s Fables won both starts to date on good ground but will he handle this? Not a chance I’d be lumping on at the odds. Wootton Bassett is a top sire and he liked the muck so maybe the rag Al Riffa can play a part. However, only two places and odds of 14/1 are not big enough to tempt. Keep the powder dry, no bet.
Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips: No Bet
4.10 – Irish St Leger (Group 1)
Kyprios is the new star of the staying division. He won at two glamour meetings in the summer sun, but can he do it on a dirty, mucky Sunday at the Curragh. He did win his maiden on heavy over a mile but his only other soft ground start resulted in a heavy defeat at Lingfield. If he is ever going to get beat, today could be the day.
Search For A Song is a standing dish in this race but she doesn’t get her favoured ground. Princess Zoe will love it and she has place claims. I’d just worry is the 14f trip a shade too sharp for her. You’d have to think her main aim is that marathon at Longchamp in October. I like Rosscarbery but you’d worry about the ground for her over this trip. Raise You and Hamish both have obvious chances. They both handle soft, they both won nicely last time and they should stay. They are priced up accordingly though.
Heavy Ground Specialist
One horse who will be thrilled with the recent rain is Jason The Militant. He has been lightly campaigned this year due to the nice weather. He hasn’t been seen since running a very nice race on his seasonal comeback at Roscommon (12f sft/hvy). A useful hurdler, he showed an aptitude for the flat on his final start of 2021, landing a heavy ground Listed race at Naas. He had Lafayette over 3L back in 3rd that day so it is quality form (Camorra 15L back in 7th).
This will only be his fourth ever run on the level and he is 2/3 so far. Ronan Whelan gets the leg up and the winner of his last race in Roscommon went very close at Leopardstown yesterday. Is he a Group 1 horse on normal ground? Definitely not, but heavy ground is a massive equaliser and if he can last the extra two furlongs, Jason The Militant can run a big race at odds of 40/1.
Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips: Jason The Militant e/w @ 40/1
4.45 – Super Auction Sales Stakes (2yo)
Another 2yo race and it’s the same old story. Soft/heavy ground form is thin on the ground. Rattle and Hum ran well on soft when beat 1.5L on debut at Galway. The drop in trip may not suit but having experience on this sort of ground has to rate as a huge plus. However, I am going to go for one at a much bigger price. Jack Davison has secured the services of Hollie Doyle for his Muhaarar filly Freedom Falls and on pedigree, this soft ground could be what she needs.
She is the only Muhaarar horse in training that is out of a Medicean dam. However, Muhaarar has produced a filly out of a Machiavellian (Medicean’s sire) mare and she won a 6f 2yo race at Chantilly on very soft ground on her debut. Freedom Falls has shown definite signs of ability on both starts to date and her last run was her best. This slight drop in trip and softer ground might well show her in a better light and at 28/1, it is worth taking the risk for small stakes.
Curragh Irish Champions Weekend Tips: Freedom Falls e/w @ 28/1
5.20 – Northfields Handicap (Premier)
If the weather forecast is right, it’s going to be swampy, boggy in places by the time of the finale. An aptitude for bad ground and stamina will be the orders of the day and a bit of luck will be required in a field of this size too. With Belloccio already declared a non-runner, our old friend In From The Cold gets in off 83. Not only will he love the ground, he likes the track and he is looking very well handicapped.
The Mulvanys have freshened the son of Alhebayeb up after a very busy spell. His last run came at Ballinrobe (9.5f gd/yld) but he was a big eyecatcher on his previous start here on yielding over a mile. He has a duck egg beside him for that run and he only finished 19th of 27. However, he finished off the race very nicely and he was only 6L behind the winner Celtic Crown. Over 2 furlongs further, I’d imagine that margin would have looked a lot different.
That came off 91, and he was only beat 2L by Lafayette over 8f at the Curragh in March 21 off 97. At Galway later that summer he was desperately unlucky in the big mile handicap, flying home for 4th, beat just 4L off 97. Three of his four wins have come on heavy, including one over 10f off 88 at Naas. There is no jockey booked yet but he is that well treated, I’m still backing him e/w at odds of 40/1.
