Tipperary Racing Scene

Hollyford apprentice Mel Sheridan rode his first winner when partnering the Denis Hogan-trained Hell Left Loose to take the opening division of the eight-furlong handicap at Gowran Park on Monday week last.

Owned by the Premier Racing Club, the 11/2 chance led after a couple of furlongs and was nicely clear over a furlong out to win by an easy seven lengths from the Adrian Melia-trained Hieloray.

Sheridan is a brother of Group 1-winning jockey Joey, and he was scoring on just his sixth ride.

Gary Carroll landed a double when riding winners for Joe Murphy and Meath-based Michael Mulvany.

Mulvany gave the Kildare jockey his first of the day when saddling 5/1 chance Ribee to win the seven-furlong handicap and Murphy’s 4/1 shot Marjorie Law completed the jockey’s double with a narrow win in the eight-furlong median sires series fillies’ maiden. She battled well in the testing conditions and got up in the final stride to score by a nose from the Willie McCreery’s Sanctijude.

The Group 3 Staffordstown Stud Stakes went their way, as did the opening maiden, to give Aidan O'Brien and Wayne Lordan a double at the Curragh on Tuesday.

The pair took the six-furlong maiden for two-year-old with the 13/2 chance Trojan Warrior which quickened up in good style inside the final furlong to beat Joseph O'Brien’s front-running joint-favourite Go Just Do It by a comfortable length and a half.

Sugar Island scored with more authority as she took the feature race on the day at odds of 5/1. She made all the running and gamely asserted over a furlong out to win by two and three-parts of a length from another from Joseph O'Brien’s stable, Thundering On. Ballydoyle also took third and fourth places with Ice Dancer and favourite Cameo respectively.

Wayne Hassett edged ahead in the race to become champion apprentice when winning the six-furlong handicap on the Martin Hassett-trained Dmaniac.

The Rebecca May-owned 7/2 favourite led passing the two-furlong pole and was well on top in beating John Nallen’s Mercurial by two and three-parts of a length.

The Ben Coen-ridden three-year-old Syzygy completed a hat-trick of wins when taking the 10-furlong handicap.

Successful at Gowran Park in September and at the Curragh two weeks previously, the Danny McLoughlin’s 100/30 chance headed the Paul Sweeney-trained favourite Pillar Of Hope inside the final fifty yards to win by half a length for her owner/breeder Andrew Davis.

Ben Coen’s remarkably strong finish to the season continued at Navan on Wednesday where he won the near six-furlong handicap on the Michael Mulvany-trained Velvet Skies.

Owned by Frank McNulty, the 7/2 favourite headed Willie McCreery’s Happy Henry inside the final furlong to score by half a length, her third career success and a 65th winner of the season for Coen.

Ross O'Sullivan gave Colin Keane his 87th success of the term as the Eleanora Kennedy-owned Bad Boy Rizz easily won the five-furlong maiden for two-year-olds. A 3/1 chance, he made much of the running and was eased close to the finish to beat Gavin Cromwell’s Tertre Rouge by two and a quarter lengths.

Wayne Lordan teamed up with Thomond O’Mara to take the concluding 14-furlong handicap on the five-year-old Charlie Brow’n. The 9/1 chance led in the final strides to deny Pat Flynn’s Just Another Eagle by a head.

Andy Slattery gave the Tullamaine apprentice his second career success when sending out Sovereign Banter to win the six-furlong handicap at Dundalk on Friday. Owned by Kay Russell, the 4/1 chance led early in the straight and went a few lengths clear over a furlong out before scoring by half a length from Ado McGuinness’ fast-finisher Nikki Swango.

Three top-flight winners over the weekend brought Aidan O’Brien’s Group 1 tally for the year to 25, leaving him just three short of his 2017 world record of 28 Group and Grade 1 ahead of the Breeders’ Cup in California later this week.

At Doncaster on Saturday, the champion trainer’s Hawk Mountain and Ronan Whelan led home a 1-2-3 for Ballydoyle in the Futurity Stakes while Christophe Soumillon was in the saddle as both Puerto Rico (Criterium International) and Pierre Bonnard (Criterium de Saint-Cloud) scored impressive wins at Saint-Cloud on Sunday.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

Dundalk – Wednesday, October 29 (First race 2.23pm)

Thurles – Thursday, October 30 (First race 1.30pm)

Down Royal – Friday, October 31 (First race 1.02pm)

Dundalk – Friday, October 31st (First race 5.30pm)

Down Royal – Saturday, November 1 (First race 12.25pm)

Cork – Sunday, November 2 (First race 12.40pm)

Curragh – Sunday, November 2 (First race 12.25pm)