Iveagh Gardens is Curragh bound

One of 13 left in the €63,000 TRM Ballyogan Stakes run over six furlongs

Seamie Heffernan onboard Mekong River wins the race ahead of Kevin Manning on Parish Hall. Photo: Morgan Treacy/Inpho
Seamie Heffernan onboard Mekong River wins the race ahead of Kevin Manning on Parish Hall. Photo: Morgan Treacy/Inpho

JP McManus’s Iveagh Gardens sprang a 25-1 shock when beating Found in last month’s Athasi Stakes and could return to the Curragh on Sunday for another Group Three prize.

Iveagh Gardens is one of 13 left in the €63,000 TRM Ballyogan Stakes run over six furlongs, a furlong shorter than the Athasi, but a distance she won over at HQ last year. Among Iveagh Gardens’ potential opposition is Newsletter who won her last start at Nottingham.

Sunday's other black type event at the Curragh is the Listed TRI Silver Stakes, a ten-furlong event won by Irish Derby winner Trading Leather in 2013. This time Jim Bolger has three older-horse options to choose from, including both Parish Hall and Loch Garman, first and second in April's Alleged Stakes over the course and distance.

Brian O'Connor

Brian O'Connor

Brian O'Connor is the racing correspondent of The Irish Times. He also writes the Tipping Point column