Tipperary Racing Scene

Having narrowly lost out with odds-on favourite Rogue Legend in the opening contest, Paddy Twomey and Billy Lee won the six-furlong maiden for three-year-olds with City Of Memphis at Cork on Tuesday.

In the colours of the Zinlo Syndicate, the 8/13 favourite was thoroughly impressive on her debut as she came through to score by two and three-parts of a length from the Gavin Cromwell-trained Bonus Time.

David Marnane has the Royal Hunt Cup at next month’s Royal Ascot in mind for Tokenomics which won the seven-furlong handicap. Denied the clearest of runs with two furlongs to race, the Luke McAteer-ridden 4/1 chance arrived with his challenge inside the final furlong, and he led close to the finish to deny Jessica Harrington’s Kings Time by half a length.

Off the mark for the season at the Curragh a day earlier, Wayne Hassett was a winner again as the eight-furlong apprentice handicap went the way of the Noel Meade-trained Port Louis. The 9/1 chance led inside the final furlong to beat the Laura Hourigan-trained Unterberg by a length.

Ben Coen and Johnny Murtagh scored as Zahrann took the concluding 10-furlong maiden. It was all too easy for the odds-on favourite which ran out a seven-length winner from Aidan O'Brien’s Des Moines despite losing a little ground to his rivals from the stalls.

Aidan O'Brien added to earlier Chester wins with the Ryan Moore-ridden Minnie Hauk and Lambourn when the Wayne Lordan’s mount First Wave ran away with the eight-furlong maiden at Gowran Park on Wednesday.

A 9/4 chance, he made much of the running and raced clear over a furlong from the finish to win by four and three-parts of a length from Dermot Weld’s Pierre Royal.

Edward O'Grady saddled the Aidan Ryan-owned St Faz to win the second of the two-mile handicap chases at Tipperary on Thursday. Ridden by Darragh O'Keeffe, the 5/2 favourite led before the final fence to beat Eoin Griffin’s One Last Tango by two and a quarter lengths.

The three-year-old Fantazy Man gave Ben Coen his first winner of the weekend when taking the opening nine-furlong optional claiming race at Ballinrobe on Friday.

A strong 11/8 favourite, Johnny Murtagh’s charge raced up with the pace and led inside the final furlong to beat the Michael Mulvany-trained Sunriseontheboyne by two and a half lengths. There were no claims following the race.

At odds of 8/15 favourite, the Paddy Twomey-trained Elana Osario won the older horses’ maiden over the same distance. Ridden by Colin Keane, the four-year-old led early in the straight to win by half a length.

Twomey landed a second success as the three-year-old Carmers took the 13-furlong maiden in the colours of owner Fiona Carmichael. The Donagh O’Connor-ridden 10/1 chance reined in the Donnacha O'Brien-trained Kilmeaden inside the final furlong to score by a length and a quarter.

William Harvey, father of jockeys Ben & Alex, sent out the gambled-on Let Her Cook to win the first of the nine-furlong handicaps. In the trainer’s own colours, the 5/1 chance made much of the running under Joey Sheridan to beat Pat Magee’s favourite Coulstys Way, ridden by Jack Kearney, by a length and three-parts.

Denis Hogan was next into the winners’ enclosure as the 100/30 chance Expound won the second of the nine-furlong handicaps, a second winner for Cork apprentice Dylan O’Connor. Owned by the Corner House Syndicate, the six-year-old notched up his fourth career success when holding off Eoin Griffin’s Molto Amichi and Colin Keane by a nose.

Queenofthelodge won the two and a quarter-mile mares’ handicap hurdle for trainer Sam Curling at Downpatrick on Friday. Ridden by Phillip Enright for the Sink Or Swim Syndicate, the 4/1 chance led at the second-last hurdle and battled well to see off Noel Meade’s Billie Frechette by three-parts of a length.

Harry Swan landed the concluding bumper on the Gordon Elliott-trained Kenisa Sport. In the colours of KTDA Racing, the 7/2 chance came from a little off the pace to lead inside the final furlong and she was quickly clear to beat Philip Dempsey’s Broomfield Aderra by five and a half lengths.

Aidan O'Brien set himself up for another huge weekend with a four-timer at Naas on Saturday. Wayne Lordan shared three of the champion trainer’s winners while Ben Coen rode the other.

Lordan was on board as the O’Brien-trained First Approach took the opening five-furlong maiden for two-year-olds. A 5/2 chance, he lost a little ground to some of his rivals leaving the stalls but came through to win by a length and a quarter from Ger Lyons’ favourite Amiata.

Lordan was again in the saddle as O’Brien got the better of Lyons for a second time on the day when the two-year-old Albert Einstein made a winning debut in the near six-furlong maiden. A strong 1/2 favourite, he headed the Meath trainer’s front-running 9/4 chance Evening Blues early inside the final furlong to win by a length and a quarter.

O’Brien and his Cork jockey had Ger Lyons back in second place for a third time when the three-year-old Galveston won the 10-furlong rated race. A 7/2 shot, he made much of the running to beat favourite Heather by a length and three-parts.

Ben Coen notched up his first success for Aidan O'Brien as 6/1 chance Garden Of Eden had taken the earlier Listed Darley Irish EBF Naas Oaks Trial. She led in the early stages and again inside the final furlong to win by a length from Adrian Murray’s Jaliyah, with the Lordan-ridden favourite Island Hopping, trained by O’Brien, three-parts of a length away in third place.

Rachael Blackmore and Henry de Bromhead landed the two-mile one-furlong rated novice hurdle with Ma Belle Etoile at Cork on Saturday. The 4/1 chance made all the running and went clear from the third-last hurdle to beat the Tony Mullins-trained Party President, by twelve lengths.

Gordon Elliott and Harry Swan were winners again as the 4/1 chance Woodland Adventure took the four-year-old fillies’ bumper. Owned by John Kalmanson, she led over one furlong from the finish to beat Enda Bolger’s Sambe Train by a length and three-parts.

Aidan O'Brien was again the big winner at Leopardstown on Sunday where Delacroix impressed once again with a comfortable success in the Group 3 Cashel Palace Hotel Derby Trial Stakes.

With Wayne Lordan in the saddle, the odds-on favourite led early in the straight and comfortably saw off the challenge of the Dermot Weld-trained Purview from before the furlong-pole to win by two and three-parts of a length.

O’Brien and Lordan had also taken the 12-furlong maiden with the gutsy Roosevelt. The 7/1 chance made all the running and held the late flourish of Joseph O'Brien’s Delta to win by a head.

The pair completed a treble as the 2/1 shot Butterfly Wings captured the 10-furlong fillies’ maiden in far easier fashion. She led over a furlong out and skipped clear to win by four lengths from the Jessica Harrington-trained Diamond Exchange.

Johnny Murtagh and Ben Coen made two more visits to the winners’ enclosure at Leopardstown on Sunday where Zodiac Bear took the opening seven-furlong maiden in fine style. The 5/1 chance led a furlong from the finish and pulled away to score by four and a quarter lengths from Dermot Weld’s Esherann.

The in-form pair followed up as 14/1 chance Chicago Critic won the Listed Porsche In Support Of Breast Cancer Ireland. Racing in last place, the Sam Mencoff and Tony Smurfit-owned four-year-old made his move early in the straight and he was soon on top to win by a length and three-parts from the Sheila Lavery-trained Kortez Bay. Aidan O'Brien’s odds-on favourite Diego Velazquez was withdrawn at the start.

Andy Slattery and his son Andrew won the 10-furlong handicap with the Pat Garvey-owned Cloud Seeker. A 100/30 favourite, the four-year-old made most of the running and held off David Marnane’s Ceallach by a neck.

Joey Sheridan landed the finale on the Ger O’Leary-trained Mister Adam. The 7/2 chance led close to the finish in the 12-furlong handicap to edge Henry de Bromhead’s Niut out by a shorthead.

The Premier Racing Club-owned Autumn Twist landed the first race of the three-day Killarney May meeting on Sunday. Ridden for Denis Hogan by Daniel King, the 11/4 chance led at the third-last hurdle and came home a cosy five-length winner from Pat Doyle’s Lodge Man in the four-year-old maiden hurdle.

Doyle went a place better to win the maiden hurdle over the same two-mile one-furlong distance with Romany Brown. Ridden by his son Jack, the 5/2 chance also led early in the straight and rallied well from the final hurdle to beat Eoin McCarthy’s Wholelotofbusiness by half a length for owner Martin Dwyer.

Sam Curling landed the four-year-old bumper with the Derek O'Connor-ridden Midnight Jet. In Curling’s own colours, the 7/2 chance got the better of Joseph O'Brien’s joint-favourite Galileo Sand inside the final furlong to win by a length and three-parts.

Upcoming Meetings

Tipperary – Wednesday, May 14 (First race 5.10pm)

Clonmel – Thursday, May 15 (First race 5.10pm)

Kilbeggan – Friday, May 16 (First race 4.50pm)

Leopardstown – Friday, May 16 (First race 5.05pm)

Navan – Saturday, May 17 (First race 1.20pm)

Wexford – Saturday, May 17 (First race 2.15pm)

Naas – Sunday, May 18 (First race 1.30pm)