Fairyhouse's Listed Belgrave Stakes gives a much-needed injection of quality to a Saturday fixture this afternoon but the domestic weekend focus must be on the Curragh which hosts the Group Two Royal Whip Stakes and the Group Three Ridgewood Pearl Desmond Stakes.
History tells us that despite the black type prizes this is the sort of card that brings the throngs to the Curragh in single file but from a betting point of view tomorrow's highlights might generate some money for the punters.
Dermot Weld has won the Desmond Stakes just once before with Asema in 1993 but he throws the highly regarded Muakaad in against just three opponents in the mile race. Weld's opinion of Muakaad is persuasively strong but maybe that will just help create a reasonable price for Golden Silca.
The Desmond Stakes and the Royal Whip are two prizes that the home trainers have done well in in recent years with British trained runners winning each race just three times in the 1990's. But Golden Silca can disrupt the trend in one of them.
Mick Channon's filly, a Group Two winner as a juvenile, went close in both the Irish 1,000 Guineas and the Coronation Stakes last year which leaves her winning record this term comparatively disappointing. Nevertheless she does have a very good Sussex Stakes fourth to Giants Causeway in the bag on her last start.
Contrast that with the total of Muakaad's achievements. A third to Sinndar in the Derrinstown Trial was very promising, a last in the French Derby very disappointing and a subsequent easy win at Leopardstown has since hardly been advertised by the horses that finished behind.
The Weld colt still has bags of potential but Golden Silca looks the proven article. She can beat him and the Ascot runner-up Duck Row and initiate a big race double for the big race specialist John Murtagh.
The jockey is reunited with Takali in the Royal Whip and this Kris colt looks a good bet to follow up his Meld Stakes success over the course and distance last month. Takali had just a neck to spare over Yara in the Meld but did have Jammaal well beaten back in fourth.
Takali also looks a rangy sort that can only go on from that and if the ground remains good he must be hard to beat. Apollo Victoria hasn't run since May when finishing lame over this track but the main danger to Takali could come from the course winner Pillars Of Society.
Raypour's rating entitles him to win the last without breaking sweat but his pace-making exploits are a different kettle of fish to actually getting his head in front so it might not be wise to rush in head first. Still he's hard to oppose as is Alfina to reverse Fairyhouse running with Ceann Amhain Eile in the Nursery.
Alfina's trainer Jim Bolger also looks to provide the solution to today's Belgrave Stakes which provides the course and distance over which the filly looked an unlucky loser behind Reptar last week.
Subsequent to that Aretha ran fourth in last Sunday's Phoenix Sprint where she had One Won One just a head in front of her. Today she's 4lbs better off and after being campaigned over longer distances this six furlongs now looks ideal.
