OCEAN’S APART..
..as Boundless can take Eyrefield
ALTHOUGH having his third run in just ten days, the Jim Bolger trained Boundless Ocean might shed his maiden tag in the Group 3 Eyrefield 2-Y-0 Stakes at Leopardstown.
A son of Teofilo, the Coolcullen colt was collared late on his debut at the Curragh last week, before reappearing two days later and finishing a close but unlucky fourth to Glounthaune in the Group 3 Killavullan Stakes.
And it’s significant that stable-jockey Kevin Manning has opted to stay close to home to ride Boundless Ocean, one of five mounts, at Leopardstown, rather than travel to partner Mctigue in the Vertem Futurity (Group 1) in Doncaster.
Boundless Ocean attracted plenty of support ahead of his Curragh debut and, a little keen, travelled strongly through the race before mastering favourite Amortentia and was then nabbed close home and beaten a neck by Dark Vega.
At Leopardstown last Saturday, just 24 hours after his debut and ridden by apprentice Luke Mcateer, Bolger’s charge ran into plenty of traffic problems up the straight before finishing fourth, beaten little more than a length, behind Glounthaune.
With a clear run, Boundless Ocean would have gone very close and might well have won. So, if he’s fully recovered from those two quick runs, just a week ago, he should be tough to beat today.
But it won’t be easy in a field which features a British challenger in the William Haggas-trained Grenoble, successful, on his second start, in a Nottingham maiden.
Ballydoyle runner Anchorage went up 12lb. to a mark of 100 for his nursery win in Thurles while Dermot Weld’s impressive Curragh maiden winner Duke De Sessa drops in class following his sixth in the National Stakes.
And the potential of maidens winners, colts Piz Badile (Killarney), Good Heavens (at this venue), French Claim (Listowel) and fillies Caroline Herschel (Killarney)and Voice Of Angels (Thurles) is difficult to assess, although none of them can be ruled out.
The Jessica Harrington-trained Njord, sixth behind Baaeed in the QR II in Ascot last week, drops in class, with obvious claims, in the listed Knockaire Stakes.
But he might struggle to cope with the less exposed Masen, trained by Ger Lyons, and conqueror of San Andreas and Cambridgeshire winner Bopedro in the Sovereign Path (Premier) Handicap over this course and distance last month.
That win, achieved off 104, sparked an 8lb. ‘hike’, which puts him 1lb. above Njord, from whom he’ll be receiving 2lb. today.
Joseph O’brien might double-up in the two-year-old maidens with Perfect Thunder and Sir Antonino.