RACING NEWS:COLM O'DONOGHUE will replace the suspended Johnny Murtagh on board Cape Blanco in Saturday's King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.
The Co Cork-born jockey has picked up Group One glory in the past on Aidan O’Brien-trained “second strings” such Astronomer Royal (the 2007 French 2,000 Guineas) and Jan Vermeer in last year’s Criterium International.
O’Donoghue was runner-up to Cape Blanco on board Midas Touch in last month’s Irish Derby, but he has been given the chance to make a big impression in Saturday’s clash of the Derby winners.
The Epsom hero Workforce remains an evens favourite for the King George with Cape Blanco a general 6 to 1 shot.
At home, ground conditions are testing at Galway ahead of next week’s summer festival, but the track authorities are hopeful of significant improvement before Monday’s kick-off.
The going was officially “soft” and “soft to heavy” in places yesterday, but more rain fell during the day, leaving manager John Moloney to put his faith in the weather forecast.
“They are telling us (that) once today and Thursday are out of the way that things should pick up. The forecast is actually pretty good up to the first few days of next week,” he said.
“If that is correct, we could be looking at yielding ground, or good to yielding, in that general area, for Monday.”
The opening day’s feature is the €75,000 Carlton.ie/Galway City Handicap, formerly the GPT, the big event for amateur riders, which Dermot Weld has won for the last three years.
The dominant trainer at Ballybrit for the last four decades has two of the 31 entries in the two-mile race after yesterday’s forfeit stage, Universal Truth and Sublime Talent.
The latter won The Irish Times Handicap at the Curragh last Sunday, but Universal Truth hasn’t been seen in action since Christmas. He was, however, fourth to Bahrain Storm in a flat handicap at Galway a year ago.
Weld is pursuing a four-in-a-row after Loyal Focus (2007), Majestic Concorde (2008) and Ghimaar last year.
Tom Hogan’s 100-rated Mount Helicon, runner-up to Alpine Eagle at Killarney earlier this month, is a possible topweight for the Day One highlight in which the 2006 winner P’tit Fute is another possible starter.
Noel Meade has left in Fisher Bridge, a general 16 to 1 shot for both the Plate and the Hurdle later in the week, after the versatile horse’s two victories on the flat recently.
In other news, the Galway Hurdle fancy Cothrom Na Feinne will miss next Thursday’s big race after meeting with a setback.
The Des McDonogh-trained horse, who races in the colours of Jim Bolger’s wife, Jackie, was as low as 10 to 1 for the Hurdle after impressive wins at Ballinrobe and Roscommon.
Meanwhile, top owner Chryss O’Reilly and trainer Kevin Prendergast had their appeal against Dazzling Day’s disqualification at Navan in April thrown out by the Turf Club yesterday.
The hearing took place almost three months after the Salsabil Stakes (April 25th) in which Dazzling Day passed the post in second place but was put back to third behind Unity, whom she was adjudged to have interfered with.
The appeals committee decided Dazzling Day had interfered with Unity and also threw out jockey Chris Hayes’s appeal against a one-day careless riding ban for the incident.
Hayes will serve that ban tomorrow. Both parties were also ordered to pay a total of €500 towards the Turf Club’s costs in the case.
In another appeal, top apprentice jockey Danny Mullins had a three-day suspension picked up at Killarney on July 12th reduced to one day.
ZOFFANY CAN PROVE HIS CLASS AT LEOPARDSTOWN
THIS EVENING’S KRA Tyros Stakes at Leopardstown has an impressive record of throwing up future top-class horses, and Zoffany can follow in some famous footsteps, writes Brian O’Connor.
Just four line up for the Group Three event, including Zoffany’s regally bred stable companion High Ruler, but an impressive performance by the likely favourite could see him replace Dunboyne Express as the shortest-priced Irish contender so far for next year’s 2,000 Guineas.
Zoffany is a general 25 to 1 for that classic after managing only sixth in the Coventry at Royal Ascot.
However, he was impressive on his reappearance over tonight’s course and distance and is highly rated at Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle yard.
Cape Blanco won the Tyros last year, and previous to him the race was won by Rip Van Winkle (2008) and the Jim Bolger pair, New Approach and Teofilo.
This evening’s other Group Three highlight is the Jockey Club of Turkey Meld Stakes, which sees O’Brien’s highly rated three-year-old Steinbeck return to action after beating only one home in the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot.
But Steinbeck faces a real threat in the five-year-old Famous Name, who is unbeaten in two starts at a mile here this season and who will relish any ease in the going.
Steinbeck comes out best on figures, but his reputation is mostly still built on potential, whereas Famous Name is tried and trusted, and could yet end up landing an elusive Group One success this season.
Sinndar’s half-sister Simkana broke her maiden over a mile-and-a-half on her last visit to Leopardstown and should relish the step up in trip for her first start in a handicap in tonight’s finale.
Any ease in going could also play a role in the mares’ maiden hurdle at Limerick this evening, and that wouldn’t be any problem to the 102-rated Emily Pankhurst.
