Racing The Dermot Weld-trained Sweet Firebird is part of a three-strong Irish assault on Sunday night's American Oaks at Hollywood Park in Los Angeles.
Also taking part in the mile and a quarter race will be the David Wachman-trained Luas Line who has travelled to the US for the $750,000 race on the back of a fifth placing in the Jersey Stakes at York. A third Irish runner will be the Aidan O'Brien-trained Silk And Scarlet.
Sweet Firebird's only win to date has been a Clonmel maiden, but the Weld filly is following in the footsteps of the 2003 American Oaks winner Dimitrova, who was also owned by Joseph Higgins.
The top American rider Alex Solis has been booked to ride Sweet Firebird, whose dam Fire The Groom was a Grade One turf winner herself in the Beverly D Stakes.
Kieren Fallon had been provisionally pencilled in for the ride on Luas Line, but his commitments to Aidan O'Brien mean that Rene Douglas will now take the ride on Luas Line whose form also includes a third placing to Saoire in the Irish 1,000 Guineas. Dimitrova was also placed third in the Irish Guineas before winning at Hollywood Park two years ago.
Wachman is supervising Luas Line's preparation in Los Angeles and said yesterday: "I think the nine to 10 furlong trip is what she has been crying out for. They came out of quarantine yesterday evening and the weather here is nice without being stifling. It looks like being the best renewal of this race with a good Japanese filly called Cesario and the good Italian filly Silver Cup also taking part."
Also in the race will be the ex-Clive Brittain-trained Hallowed Dream whose last start was a second in the Italian Oaks for owner Gary Tanaka.
A total of eight horses have been left in tomorrow's Coral Eclipse Stakes and they include the Aidan O'Brien-trained Oratorio who will be ridden by Kieren Fallon.
O'Brien has won the Eclipse twice before with Giant's Causeway (2000) and Hawk Wing (2002), but this time the mile and a quarter Sandown feature is being billed as a clash between the Epsom and Chantilly Derby winners, Motivator and Shamardal.
In France on Sunday the Ballydoyle colt Ad Valorem, ridden by Fallon, is set to tackle the Prix Jean Prat at Chantilly and try to go one better than his seasonal debut when runner-up to Shamardal in the St James's Palace Stakes.
Horse Racing Ireland have announced a pair of replacement fixtures including an extra meeting at the end of August's Tralee Festival (Friday, August 26th) which will now extend to five days.
HRI's chief executive Brian Kavanagh stressed yesterday that the extra day is being given because of the loss of a fixture at Tralee earlier this month. "They felt adding a fixture to the end of the festival would provide the best chance for a good crowd rather than having a stand alone date," said Kavanagh.
The feature of this evening's 15 races between Limerick and Bellewstown is the Listed Martin Molony Stakes where the Ballydoyle team run last week's maiden winner Portsmouth. That Curragh race got more headlines for Fran Berry's nine- day suspension than Portsmouth's actual win, but there was much to like about his performance and he looks a colt on the up.
O'Brien and Fallon can also strike in the mile and a half fillies maiden with Briolette who had an entry earlier in the week for a Group Three at Chantilly but comes here instead.
Tommy Stack's Stolen Summer ran a promising debut at Gowran behind Duff and looks one to check out in the seven-furlong auction maiden while Stack could also go close in the opener at Bellewstown with the Montjeu filly Womans Chat.
A jockey to follow at Bellewstown may be Niall Madden who is on the Ballinrobe dead-heater Team Allstar in the Crockafotha Hurdle, and he also looks to have a major shout in the maiden hurdle with Delaza.
