Claret books place at Ballybrit

THE upcoming seven-day Galway Festival is foremost on a lot of people’s minds at present and there were plenty of Ballybrit clues on offer last weekend, none more so than at Limerick on Sunday where Tony Mullins’ Claret booked her Galway Hurdle ticket with a smooth success.
A good winner over hurdles at Sligo and on the flat at Tramore already this season, Clarach went to post 9/4 favourite to account for her 11 rivals in the two-mile Adare Festival Weekend Rated hurdle and did so with the minimum of fuss.
Ridden by her trainer’s son, Danny, this daughter of Beneficial swept to the front at the penultimate flight and ran on really strongly from there to beat runner-up, Pires, by two lengths.
Mullins senior, whose late father, Paddy, had a tremendous record at Ballybrit, commented, “All my life, I’ve dreamed of training one for the Galway Hurdle and this mare fits into that category. She’s very honest and finds plenty although she likes to have things her own way a bit. I hope the handicapper won’t be too hard on her for today’s win and, as she likes good ground, she should have a decent chance at Galway. I might run her in the big amateur handicap on the opening evening as well, we’ll see nearer the time.”
Tony Martin was on the mark in www.tote.com Galway Plate Trial at the Greenmount Park track where Paul Townend guided his 11/4 favourite Victrix Gale to victory.
Considered something of a handicap ‘good thing’ off 9-13, Victrix Gale took up the running at the second-last fence and duly obliged when staying on powerfully to beat Jamsie Hall by two and a half lengths.  Charles Byrne’s Gigginstown House runner Campbonnais was another length and a half away in third.
Local trainer Noel Glynn was represented by Gonebeyondrecall in this two-mile, six-furlong contest and, while Slippers Madden’s mount looked full of running before the home turn, he faded in the home straight to eventually finish fifth.
Ruby Walsh kept his sizeable following happy when registering a double, initiated by his opening race success aboard Henry De Bromhead’s 6/4 favourite The Folkes Choice.
Champion jockey Walsh enjoys a great strike rate when teaming up with Waterford-based De Bromhead and The Folkes Choice, who races in the Sizing Europe colours of Ann and Alan Potts, kept the run going when staying on well in the closing stages of this two-mile maiden hurdle to beat 16/1 outsider Lord Of Isenay by just over a length.
Walsh went to complete his double when guiding his father’s, Ted’s, 4/1 shot Devil’s Elbow to victory in the three-mile Limerick.ie Chase.
Racing in the familiar silks of Dublin owner Barry Connell, Devil’s Elbow jumped past long-time leader Prince Ludovic at the final fence and wasn’t overly extended when passing the post three and three-quarter lengths to the good over the Davy Russell partnered runner-up.
“He jumped well and travelled nicely all the way,” said Ted Walsh. “His owner loves Galway and that’s where this horse will go next. He finished second there last year and we’ll have plenty of options with him this time round.”
Tralee trainer Tom Cooper does well with his string and he got on the scoresheet when his Eightybarackstreet (4/1) battled bravely to land the two-mile, one-furlong beginners’ chase.
Grand National-winning jockey Robbie Power did the steering on this King’s Theatre six-year-old who really stuck his neck out on the run-in to deny runner-up Lord Ben by a length.
County Meath trainer Michael Mulvany admitted to having a few bob on his shock 20/1 winner First Impressions who ran out a good winner of the two-mile, five-furlong handicap hurdle.
John Cullen rode a confident race on the successful son of Beneficial who quickened up nicely from early in the home straight to beat Zaralabad – who is owned by Dublin-based Cooraclare native Noel O’Flaherty – by three and a half lengths.
The concluding mares’ bumper was divided with the first section going to 8/1 shot, Magic Vixen. The Patrick Mullins-ridden winner, who is from the family of Gold Cup winner Kicking King, was bred at Sunnyhill Stud in Kilcullen, County Kildare, by Michael Hickey and is trained in County Carlow by his daughter, Jane Foley.
Newmarket-on-Fergus trainer Karen Hannon was represented in this two-and-a-half-mile contest by her Ballybunion point-to-point winner Tizonlyme and she will be pleased by her showing as the Paul O’Neill-ridden 14/1 shot ran a good race to finish a creditable sixth.  
Cork trainer Jimmy Mangan took the second heat as his Isabelle Amie (3/1), under a good drive from Johnny Burke son of Mallow handler Liam, battled on tenaciously to hold the determined challenge of Queen of The Hill by a neck.

Nathaniel continues Gosden’s run
WHILE the recent wet weather is wreaking havoc on the racing front on both sides of the Irish Sea, ground conditions do not seem to be inhibiting UK trainer John Gosden who flying season continued when his Nathaniel scored in the Coral-Eclipse Stakes at Sandown on Saturday.
The withdrawal, due to injury of Aidan O’Brien’s So You Think, opened up this Group 1 event in a big way and Nathaniel (7/2), who was having his first outing since the previous October, stubbornly refused to yield when tackled well inside the final furlong by Godolphin’s 11/4 favourite Fahrr bravely sticking to his task to beat that Frankie Detorri-ridden rival by half a length.
While Gosden is no rookie at the game, his form this season has been sensational to say the least. The Newmarket handler is currently lying in third place behind Mark Johnson and Richard Hannon in the trainers’ table with in-form Buick contributing in no small way (the pair have combined successfully 42 times this season so far) and he surely looks a future champion jockey in the making even at this early stage.
One of the more interesting snippets to emerge from Gosden’s post-race musings was the fact that he did not rule out the possibility of taking on wonder horse, Frankel, in the King George at Ascot in two weeks’ time.
When the duo clashed in what was Frankel’s first-ever run on a racecourse in a maiden at Newmarket back in 2010, only two lengths separated the pair. However, that was a long time ago and Frankel has since gone on to greatness, winning all of his 10 starts since with Tom Queally’s mount now as low 1/3 to go through the remainder of the season unbeaten.