Star Harbour can make winning handicap debut in finale
After two reasonable starts over seven furlongs, Star Harbour stepped up a little further when third over a mile on his most recent outing
Expensive foal and yearling Star Harbour can make a winning handicap debut in the Hollywoodbets Horse Racing & Sports Betting Handicap which brings this afternoon’s Dundalk card to a close.
After two reasonable starts over seven furlongs, he stepped up a little further when third over a mile on his most recent outing. On that most recent occasion, he came from off the pace with quite a strong late move and, while no match for the first two home, ran well enough to suggest his turn was not far away.
Ado McGuinness’s three-year-old is open to further improvement and should have little trouble confirming recent form with Barretstown. He may find sterner resistance from the two Joseph O’Brien-trained runners, Kadupul and Falsaron.
The former is having his first start for connections and must be respected, while the latter completed his application for a handicap mark with a pretty poor effort over five furlongs on what was his first start for this O’Brien brother, having previously been with Donnacha.
He was run off his feet over that trip and is upped to a mile on this occasion. In the smaller field over the longer trip, he should be able to lie up handy and could be a real danger to the selection.
McGuinness can also take the opening race, the Irishinjuredjockeys.com Claiming Race, with Raphael. A winner of a similar contest over here three runs ago, he was upped to ten and a half furlongs for his last two outings and patently didn’t get home. He drops back to seven furlongs this time and, while a mile might be more suitable, he has the class to overcome today’s rivals. He is preferred to Comin’ Through, who finished behind him here on January 8 and who renews rivalry on the same terms.
2:20 Raphael (NB)
2:55 Annabelle Rock
3:25 Doyouthinkso
3:55 Port Lockroy
4:25 Ballycaines
4:55 Dande
5:30 Mijul Angel
6:00 Star Harbour (Nap)
2:20 Comin’ Through
2:55 Alice Milligan
3:25 Arctic Blaze
3:55 Chateau Musar
4:25 Persian Lion
4:55 Spelga
5:30 Soineanta
6:00 Falsaron
