Admiral Barry gets Galway win

Galway’s 2010 summer festival got underway on Monday evening in front of an opening evening crowd of 17,962 (620 up on 2009) with victory in the featured two-mile €75,000 carlton.ie/galwaycity (QR) handicap going to the Eoin Griffin-trained 10/1 shot Admiral Barry.

Racing in the silks of Wexford man John Brennan, Admiral Barry had to pull out all the stops in the closing stages for his 20-year-old Wexford-born rider Mikey Fogarty to get the better of Tom Hogan’s gallant top-weight Mount Helicon with just a length and a quarter separating the pair at the line. Willie Mullins’ 11/2 favourite Ballyhaunis filled third a further six lengths in rear with Star Wood in fourth.
“I’m thrilled for John (Brennan) who has been very patient with this horse,” said a jubilant Griffin in the winner’s enclosure.
“We have always thought an awful lot of him and it is fantastic to win a prestigious race like this. To be honest, he was very disappointing over hurdles and just never seemed to take to them at all. We knew he was back to his best and is in again here in the feature race on Friday and may well run.”
Dermot Weld’s love affair with Ballybrit is well documented and the man more commonly known to punters at the western venue as the ‘King of Ballybrit’ kicked off this year’s meeting in the best possible fashion when sending out 5/1 shot Force Of Habit to land the opening hotelmeyrick.ie/ghotel.ie Novice Hurdle.
Recent Ballinrobe winner Hail Caeser appeared set for victory when jumping the final flight in front here but Paul Townend produced Force Of Habit with a well-timed challenge that saw him hit the front inside the final 100 yards to beat that rival by three-parts of a length.
Weld, who trains the winner for joint owners Dr Ronan Lambe and Michael Hillary Burke, remarked, “That was a very good ride from Paul and all credit must go to him. I only ran this horse here because he was available as I am well aware of his talents. Our horse is tough and will come back here either on Thursday for a mile and a half handicap or a two-mile event on Sunday.”
The master of Rosewell House went on to register a first and last race double when claiming the concluding irelandshotels.com flat race with 2/1 favourite Fort Defiance.
Robbie McNamara had the grey son of Dalakhani in the front rank from an early stage and the pair were not to be denied when passing the post three-parts of a length to the good over main market rival Apt Manor.
“Robbie (McNamara) dominated the race from the box seat and he is a brilliant rider,” said Weld. “The horse was fit and well and it is nice to see those colours (of winning owner Dr Michael Smurfit) being carried to success at Galway.”
Paul Deegan has his string firing on all cylinders at present and the Curragh handler was on the mark in the galwaybayhotel.com handicap with 7/1 chance Enjoy Your Life.
Willie Supple had the mount on this son of Zafeen, who showed plenty of dash when edging clear inside the distance to see off runner-up, Footprint, by half a length.
Deegan later divulged, “This is a lovely, big horse. Mentally, he was very fragile as a two-year-old but he has improved a lot in that department now. The first-time cheek pieces were also a huge help.”
Joseph O’Brien, the 17-year-old son of Ballydoyle trainer Aidan O’Brien, made his first ride at Ballybrit a winning one when steering 9/4 shot Robin Hood to victory in the claregalwayhotel.ie EBF Maiden.
A beaten favourite when second to the highly rated Pathfork at the Curragh on Irish Oaks day, Robin Hood made no mistake on this occasion when forging clear inside the final furlong to beat Kevin Prendergast’s Tashqeel by three-parts of a length.
The winning rider said, “This fellow keeps galloping and will stay further in time. We were disappointed he was beaten at the Curragh but today was nice compensation. Dad is watching at home on telly and will be thrilled.”
Notalossonya, a good winner at Leopardstown last week, recorded a quick follow-up when scoring in the 12-furlong ghotelie&hotelmeyrick.ie handicap under a power-packed ride from Wayne Lordan.
The 10/1 winner, who is owned by well-known bookmaker Luke McMahon and his wife Susan, stuck to her task in really good fashion to beat runner-up Sailors Warn by two lengths.
Winning trainer Eddie Lynam was absent but Lordan reported, “Once we got a bit of room in the dip she flew home. She quickened well and has plenty of guts, which is always a big plus.”
Davy Russell, on the sidelines since breaking a bone in his ankle in a fall at Listowel over the June Bank Holiday weekend, returned to race-riding action at this fixture and wasted little time in getting back in the winning groove when guiding Charles Byrnes’ 8/1 shot Kalellshan to a pillar-to-post victory in the jurysinn.com handicap hurdle.
The winner, who carries the colours of Liam O’Kelly, made every yard of the running and found plenty for pressure when staying on gamely up the final climb to deny runner-up Total Excitement by a length and a half.
“Bouncing this horse out in front today made all the difference as he ran way too free in the early stages when unplaced at Sligo last time,” said Byrnes. “He is entered here again on Friday in an amateur riders’ handicap hurdle but he might have too much weight for that race now.”

Harbinger stars as Workforce flops
A small but select field of six went to post last Saturday in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes at Ascot.
Epsom Derby hero Workforce was expected to add to his tall reputation in this Group One 12-furlong contest but things didn’t exactly go to plan with his stable companion Harbinger spoiling the party when running out a facile winner under French jockey Oliver Peslier.
Confront did his job as pacemaker in the early stages, with the remaining five runners travelling in his slipstream. Approaching the two furlong pole, it was clear Workforce was struggling in behind, with Peslier launching Harbinger with a withering run up the middle of the track.
Now in full stride, Harbinger really accelerated and, with the minimum of fuss, the four-year-old stretched away to beat Aidan O’Brien’s Irish Derby winner Cape Blanco by 11 lengths. This was a scintillating effort by Harbinger, who was giving 12lbs to both the Irish and English Derby winners.
Sir Michael Stoute, whose horses are in serious form at present, was very pleased with the winner’s display and the Arc in Paris next October will be his next assignment. He said, “This horse was superb today. He looked the winner from a long way out and stretched further and further clear. We’ll have to have a serious look at the Arc for him now.”
While it was joy for Harbinger, the effort of Workforce was a major disappointment for the Stoute team. He never travelled and was a spent force with fully three furlongs to go. His rider, Ryan Moore, who had given up the mount on Harbinger to stay loyal to the Epsom winner, felt that the fast ground at Ascot may have been against his horse. It certainly wasn’t a true run from Workforce, who obviously had an off day.

Racing – the Irish way
Horse Racing Ireland (HRI) launched their new racing publication, A Guide to Racing in Ireland, at the Galway Festival on Tuesday.
The guide is aimed at horse racing fans curious to know more about what’s happening on the course and behind the scenes of a race day, bringing readers through the horse’s journey from the breeding barn to the track. It also explains how organised racing started and developed and what it takes to run it.