*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
16:00 CHICAGO BLACK HAWK (NAP)
A competitive three-year-old maiden to kickstart the card and while all the big stables are represented, it may not be as straight forward as some may think. Given his stunning start to the Flat campaign, Aidan O’Brien will be expected to have a major say here with Handel, an Irish 2,000 Guineas entry which disappointed on his sole juvenile start last year.
Better will be expected from him here while Scope, a son of the dual Group 3 winner Tested, fared well for a long way at the Curragh behind Horoscope 18 days ago and is likely to be fancied also. However, Johnny Murtagh might be the man to supply the winner, given his bright start to the season, and in CHICAGO BLACK HAWK, he might have a useful horse on his hands.
Beaten less than five lengths by current Epsom Derby favourite High Definition on his debut last August, he then improved on that effort to finish a respectable third behind subsequent Prix Criterium International winner Van Gogh in September. The fifth and eight-placed horses, Earlswood and Bear Story, have since won and there’s every chance that Chicago Black Hawk will be the next from that Curragh maiden to frank the form.
New to Paddy Power?
16:30 QUEENSHIP (NB)
The first handicap on the card and it could be significant that Joseph O’Brien has declared Music To My Ears in a bid to keep the weight down for his other runner QUEENSHIP. Two good runs at Dundalk have already given the daughter of Excelebration a good start to her career, the second of which she won, and on the latter occasion, she showed plenty of resilience, which is a positive sign. She makes her turf debut here and being a half-sister to American Group 3 winner Zofelle, the drying ground will be to her advantage.
What’s also in her favour is that she gets the three-year-old allowance and Mikey Sheehy takes off a further 5lbs so she’s effectively 13lbs well-in here. She is taking on some familiar names in the likes of Silver Service and Galtee Mist but that duo, as well as the remainder of the runners, will do well to give Joseph O’Brien’s filly weight and a beating.
18:00 ROSSCARBERY
Once again, all the main trainers have rocked up with runners here and it’s likely that Joseph O’Brien may supply the favourite in Ubuntu, which ran three times as a juvenile and finished off her campaign by contesting the May Hill Stakes at Doncaster. She wasn’t up to the standard required that day but prior to that, she managed to finish a staying-on third to Divinely in the Group 3 Flame Of Tara Stakes, which is the best piece of form on show here.
Ballydoyle are solely represented by Frill, a half-sister to Garswood, but she ran moderately in a maiden last November. Nahaab is an interesting newcomer for Kevin Prendergast and Chris Hayes but she holds no fancy entries so the vote goes for ROSSCARBERY, which showed very well on her debut last August.
She finished a close fourth behind Shandra and Shahaala, two promising fillies, and the horse which finished third that day Talacre has since franked the form. What is most significant about Rosscarbery’s effort that day is that she had Ubuntu behind her in fifth and while she disappointed on her second start, that was on unsuitable ground. She’s worth another chance and it’s safe to say this daughter of Sea The Stars might offer excellent value in what appears to be a wide open race.
DON’T MISS
- DON’T MISS OUR BRAND NEW SNAZZY RACECARDS FOR EVERY SINGLE RACE TODAY
- … THEN CHECK OUT ALL THE WINNERS BEFORE ANYONE ELSE WITH OUR FAST RESULTS PAGES
18:30 MEISHAR
A maiden for the older generation and given her displays over timber in the last 12 months, this might look a good opportunity for Dewcup to open her account on the Flat. Rated 135 over hurdles, she has run against the likes of Fury Road and Ballyadam in her recent starts and she has three placed efforts to her name from her trio of starts on the level too.
However, this trip of 1m1f might be on the sharp side for Ted Walsh’s mare and there’s also the possibility that this race is being used as a prep for an outing at the Punchestown festival. Il Pescatore is an interesting runner having finished fifth on his sole start, and Colin Keane rides, while Fil The Power has some good efforts to his name and ran creditably behind Aesop on Saturday.
Saying all of that, MEISHAR might just make it third time lucky. A huge eyecatcher on debut behind Horoscope at the Curragh last month, when he came out from a long way back to finish second, he then followed up with another runner-up effort at Dundalk ten days later. Stepping up in trip is sure to suit James McAuley’s five-year-old and while he’s likely to need to improve again, he shouldn’t be too far away come the business end.
Rob’s tips at Gowran Park
16:00 – Chicago Black Hawk (NAP)
16:30 – Queenship (NB)
18:00 – Rosscarbery
18:30 – Meishar
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
Read More
- New to Paddy? Click here for our £/€20 sign up offer
- Horse Racing tips: Frank Hickey’s four to follow at Fairyhouse Easter Festival
- Grand National Festival: Dates and race times for 2021 Aintree meeting
- Party Time at Punchestown as Paddy pens three-year Champion Hurdle sponsorship deal
THE PADDY POWER GUIDE TO RESPONSIBLE GAMBLING – EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
