Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Michael Creed and several representatives of the Cork Flat Breeders were present for a high-class programme at Mallow racecourse yesterday afternoon, where the featured Munster Oaks went to the Aidan O’Brien-trained Pretty Perfect.

Declan McDonogh recorded his second treble in two weeks when scoring on Great Wide Open and Zorba The Greek for Charles O’Brien and Paul Nolan’s Usain in Gowran Park last night.

Horseracing paused to remember Jacqueline O’Brien, wife of legendary horse trainer Vincent O’Brien, whose death at the age of 89 was announced yesterday.

Fossett’s Circus is set to break even in 2015 after exiting examinership earlier in the year.

Day two of the Listowel Festival, and Rose Of Tralee can get punters off to a flyer in the opening fillies’ maiden.

The valuable Irish Stallion Farms EBF Premier Nursery tops the bill on today’s card at Navan, and Birdcage can make the most of the drop back to five furlongs to land the spoils for trainer Ger Lyons.

Roll up, roll up — hundreds of very special children are set to enjoy a night at the circus, thanks to celebrity solicitor Gerald Kean.

Santa Monica gets the nap to earn an overdue maiden success this evening at Tipperary. There is a concern she isn’t proven on the likely testing ground, but her dam secured her sole victory on good-to-soft going, and this lady has shown plenty of class in three outings to date.

Beaten by Tanava on her debut, the Aidan O’Brien-trained Minding impressed when landing the two-year-old fillies maiden in Leopardstown last night.

The Ado McGuinness-trained filly Roco Roja, impressive on her debut in Killarney two weeks ago, proved the star of last night’s Gowran Park action, landing the five-runner Ladies Day June 20 Fillies race in emphatic style.

Found remains a short price for the Investec Oaks despite being beaten by 25-1 outsider in Iveagh Gardens on her return to action in the Canford Cliffs EBF Athasi Stakes at the Curragh yesterday.

The Punchestown Festival kicks off with the Fr Sean Breen Memorial Chase and Wish Ye Didnt gets the nap to set punters off on the right foot.

Greyscape will be strongly fancied to get off the mark at his third attempt in today’s opener in Cork, the Irish Stallion Farms 2-Y-0 Auction Maiden.

At Leopardstown last Sunday Bishops Road beat Heathfield by a head in a modest handicap chase.

Sgt Rock should make it third-time-lucky in the Irish Stallion Farms 2-Y-0 Maiden in Dundalk tonight.

Solomon Northup sets a decent standard in the one-mile Irish Stallion Farms 2-Y-0 Maiden in Dundalk tonight.

Façade, who caught the eye first time out, gets the nap in the Irish Stallion Farms’ EBF Fillies Maiden at Dundalk tonight.

Pat Smullen reached 100 winners in a season for the first time with a double at Gowran Park highlighted by the victory of Brooch in the feature Denny Cordell Lavarack & Lanwades Stud Fillies Stakes.

Easily the most interesting horse on view at Gowran Park tonight is Dermot Weld’s Windsor Park in the Santa Train Maiden.

Shutter Island got up late on to land the most valuable race on Ballinrobe’s card, the E. P. S. Pumps Handicap Hurdle last night.

Henry Higgins gets the nap to land a fascinating little four-runner Anglo Printers Novice Hurdle at Bellewstown tonight.

Ger Lyons is fancied to continue his excellent run with Unrequited in the Follow @TipperaryRaces On Twitter Maiden at Tipperary tonight.

Gordon Elliott, who reached a milestone of a hundred winners at Perth on Sunday, struck again in Roscommon last night when Takeyourcapoff captured the featured Athlone Handicap Hurdle under a confident ride by Paul Carberry.

Ireland’s national circus has threatened legal action against a rival group after gardaí were called to a tents standoff in Cork.

John Murphy believes Davids Park has enough raw ability to fight his corner in the PW McGrath Memorial Ballysax Stakes at Navan on Saturday.

Dermot Weld and Pat Smullen got the Irish Flat turf season off to the perfect start by taking out the two feature events on the opening afternoon of the campaign at the Curragh.

Backed into 1/2 favourite, the J P McManus-owned Shield delivered for Aidan and Joseph O’Brien in the two-mile bookigs@dundalkstadium.com Maiden in Dundalk last night.

Five years ago, business in Newcastle West was challenging. Claire O’Sullivan returns to see what changes have occurred and how owners have coped

The Aidan O’Brien-trained Indian Maharaja, the first foal of Irish 1,000 Guineas winner Again, proved the star of last night’s action in Gowran Park, storming home an impressive six-and-a-half lengths winner of the Irish Stallion Farms 2-Y-0 Maiden, the season’s first juvenile event over a mile.

Wonderfully, a full-sister to Mars, defied a significant market drift to make a successful debut in the Irish Stallion Farms 2-Y-0 Fillies Maiden at Fairyhouse last night.

Aidan O’Brien announced the probable riding arrangements for his three 2000 Guineas candidates at Newmarket on Saturday at Tipperary last night.

Caponata, an impressive winner on her debut at the corresponding meeting last year, made her stakes-race breakthrough when landing the listed Victor McCalmont Memorial Stakes at Gowran Park yesterday.

Prince De Beauchene is fancied to emphasise that he is a major Aintree Grand National candidate by landing the Grade 2 Bobbyjo Chase at Fairyhouse this afternoon.

Noel Meade’s Monksland can make a winning seasonal debut in the Grade 2 WKD Hurdle at Down Royal This afternoon.

Stocktons Wing will be expected to build on his promising hurdling debut run in Listowel in today’s opener at Punchestown, the Go Racing In Kildare 3-Y-0 Maiden Hurdle, if the meeting survives an 8am inspection.

Unplaced in both the Irish and English Oaks and taking a significant drop in class, the Aidan O’Brien-trained Twirl made all to land the listed Hurry Harriet Stakes in Gowran Park yesterday, beating stable-companion Soon by a length and a half.

Pedro The Great, ridden by Seamus Heffernan, gave Aidan O’Brien a record twelfth Keeneland Phoenix Stakes success at the Curragh yesterday.

On a night when apprentice Conor Hoban took the riding honours with a double, the Jim Bolger-trained three-year-old Livia Galilei landed the Connacht Oaks in Sligo last night.

Dermot Weld’s Sapphire made a spectacular seasonal debut at Cork yesterday when sweeping to an easy success in the Group 3 Kerry Group Noblesse Stakes.

Highlight of the flat action in Navan last night was the return to form of the Tracy Collins-trained Arctic in the Follow Navan On Facebook Handicap, the grey five-year-old registering his first success since landing the Group 3 Round Tower Stakes at the Curragh as a juvenile.