HE’S HOT ON THE TRAIL
No surprise if Native lands a big one at the Curragh on Saturday
NATIVE Trail will be a long odds-on favourite to gain classic compensation in Saturday’s Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh.
The Godolphin colt carried an untarnished record into the Qipco 2,000 Guineas in Newmarket before being outpointed by stable-companion Coroebus.
British-trained Native Trail tops a list of 12 acceptors for the first Irish classic of the season.
Aidan O’brien (inset) supplemented Ivy League – runner-up in a recent Group 3 in Leopardstown – to the race yesterday, at a cost of €50,000, joining The Acropolis, unplaced in the French 2,000 Guineas on Sunday
Joseph O’brien left recent Tetrarch winner Buckaroo in the race, although a final decision on whether he’ll run or wait for the Cazoo Derby in Epsom has yet to be made.
Dermot Weld’s Leopardstown trial winner Homeless Songs, who skipped the French Guineas, is favourite for
Sunday’s Tattersalls 1,000 Guineas, ahead of Balydoyle pair Tuesday, third in the English equivalent, and History, who defeated Agartha in a recent trial in Leopardstown.
On this evening’s flat card in Cork, the Ger Lyons-trained Janoobi is a confident nap choice to open his account in the one-mile Follow Us On Instagram Maiden.
Runner-up to Eldar Eldarov in a Nottingham maiden last October, when trained by Mark Johnston, he went tantalisingly close to making a successful Irish debut in a Leopardstown maiden back in April, making the running and being caught on the line by Hotel Wren in a field which included two subsequent winners.
Lyons has taken his time with the towering son of Night Of Thunder. And he’s expected to prove too strong for Marhaba Ashmayne, runner-up in his two starts and withdrawn in Killarney yesterday when the ground turned soft.
Lyons and Colin Keane might also take the earlier two-year-old maiden with Midnight Toker, like Janoobi, attempting to make it third-time lucky.
A close and promising third to Ocean Quest in the opening juvenile event of the season at the Curragh, this Acclamation colt showed plenty of speed in Navan on his second start, ultimately filling third spot behind Ballydoyle colt Aesop’s Fables
and Weld’s first two-year-old runner of the season, Tanaiyla.
This easier five furlongs should suit the Glenburnie colt, who’s preferred to Joseph O’brien’s Sarcastic and the Michael O’callaghan-trained newcomer Studio City.
Lyons will be doublyrepresented, by Jarvis and Neo Soul, in the fivefurlong handicap. But I’ll take a chance on James Barrett’s Furnace Creek, winner of his maiden here last time and expected to be suited by this drop back to five furlongs.