Willie Mullins edged ahead of Dermot Weld in the race to be top trainer at Galway this week when Queen Deirdre made a winning debut in the Terry Cunningham Memorial EBF Mares Flat Race on the penultimate afternoon at Ballybrit.
There was a good word for the daughter of King’s Theatre and she did not disappoint.
Patrick Mullins eased the 8-11 favourite to the lead approaching the turn and she cruised clear to annihilate her opposition, with runner-up Joy’s Gift 12 lengths adrift at the line.
Mullins senior said: “That was very good. She showed plenty of gears at home, but I didn’t think she was that strong.
“The manner of her win surprised me, for a four-year-old to win like that against older horses. She might go for a winners’ bumper or we could leave her off until the winter. She can do nothing but improve.”
On what is a points-based system, Mullins currently stands on 48 with Weld hot on his heels with 46.
Aidan O'Brien's Capri made light work of his rivals in the 'Ladbrokes' EBF Maiden, looking set for much bigger things.
Seamie Heffernan was happy to take the lead on the 2-7 favourite, but the whole field were in with a shout rounding the home turn.
The grey kept finding more for Heffernan’s hands and heels urgings, and he pulled away nicely in the final furlong, eventually recording a two-and-a-half-length success over Rekindling.
Joseph O’Brien represented his father and said: “He had a lovely run the first day. Everyone always liked him. Seamie loved him all along, he loved him the first day, but he was very green.
“The third (Tang Dynasty) ran a nice race, it was kind of the same story, he ran a bit green and finished out his race well.
“The winner could be a very good horse. Dad has the National Stakes in the back of his mind for him and he could end up there.”
Trainer/jockey Denis Hogan bagged his first success of this year's Festival when Jack The Wire ran out a convincing winner of the Ladbrokes Mobile Maiden Hurdle.
The 8-1 chance had been well beaten at Tipperary earlier this month, but travelled sweetly into contention before striking for home at the second-last.
Black Ace was the only one to give Jack The Wire any worries in the home straight, but he was still three and a quarter lengths down at the line, with another seven-and-a-half-length gap back to Timing’severything in third.
Hogan said: “Anything he does over hurdles is a bonus, it’s all about chasing with this horse.
“We took our time with him over the winter, the ground was very heavy when he ran in a few beginners’ chases. I had Galway in the back of my head and I thought maybe we could find a handier maiden hurdle, my family own him and they’d have a day out.”
Hogan saddled his second winner of the afternoon when the Gary Halpin-ridden Tithonus refused to be pegged back in the Ladbrokes Red Day Handicap.
Course specialist Cairdiuil loomed up as a massive threat in the straight but Hogan’s 12-1 winner was not to be denied and kept going to prevail by three-quarters of a length.
Tuesday’s winner and 7-4 favourite Beau Satchel had to settle for third in his bid to repeat his victory in this race of a couple of years ago.
Hogan said: “We had a slow start to the week, we are only getting going! I knew our best chances were today.
“Tithonus is a versatile horse. It’s strange, he was second in two maiden hurdles over two miles and then it was looking like he doesn’t get a mile. His trip on the Flat seems to be six, seven furlongs so it’s a strange one.”
Firey Speech defied top weight to land the An Pucan EBF Nursery Handicap for Weld and Pat Smullen.
The Naas scorer travelled close to the pace set by Sir Dreamalot before Smullen asked him to go and win his race rounding the home turn.
He established a clear break on the chasing pack and while it was eroded slightly in the closing stages, Smullen kept the 11-4 favourite going to beat Sir Edwin Landseer by two lengths.
Smullen said: “He has improved from the last day and another furlong was no harm to him. He did well, it was a competitive little nursery.”
Striking Gold broke his duck with a resolute performance in the Ladbrokes 'The Grid' Handicap.
The Jessica Harrington-trained gelding finished stone last on his only previous foray into handicap company, which goes some way to explaining his starting price of 40-1.
There did not appear to be any fluke about his victory, though, as he quickened well when asked to make his challenge rounding the turn by Colm Donoghue and stayed on strongly to dispose of another outsider in Captain Carleton by a length.
Harrington said: “I was hoping for a good run, he was working well at home. He had a good run at Leopardstown, but he just didn’t want to know at Down Royal. Colm had to really get after him from the stalls as he started slowly today.
“He will go for something similar now, he has had a light summer. He will make a lovely jumper as he has plenty of size and scope about him.”
