Racing tips: HMS Endeavour can steam home in opener at Dundalk
HMS Endeavour & Seamie Heffernan win the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden in August. Picture: Healy Racing
We look north for the two meetings on Friday, with Downpatrick’s National Hunt card off first, at 1:25pm, and just overlapping with the start of Dundalk’s all-weather offering, which begins at 4:40pm. The nap comes in the first at Dundalk, the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Race, which can go to the Aidan O’Brien-trained HMS Endeavour.
The colt showed plenty of promise on debut when finishing third behind Recurrent Dream, and duly stepped forward to win his maiden at Navan. Dropped to five and a half furlongs, he showed loads of pace and, after going clear a furlong out, did enough to hold the late run of Pirate Jenny by half a length.
The runner-up was well backed to win a maiden on yesterday’s card at Naas but was withdrawn at the start. Unfortunately, we learned nothing of the form there, but it didn’t take long to right that wrong. Seventy minutes later Red Lacewing, who finished third to HMS Endeavour and Pirate Jenny, won a maiden a touch more comfortably than the narrow winning distance might suggest.
Dropping another half furlong will be no problem for HMS Endeavour, who looks to have inherited plenty of speed from her sire, War Front. He can prove too progressive for his useful rivals, which are headed by Pennine Hills. The latter has been beaten on all three starts since her winning debut, but she finished runner-up to Ladies Church in a fillies’ listed race and that form sets the standard here.
In Downpatrick, it will be great to see Davy Russell back in action after the best part of a year on the sideline. He has been booked for two rides for Gordon Elliott and can get straight back to winning ways aboard The Greek, in the opening Bill McIlroy Bookmaker Maiden Hurdle.
Jack Kennedy rides Chesterville in the Northern Ireland On-Course Bookmakers Association Handicap Chase and can be another winner for Elliott. He made his stable debut last time out in a handicap hurdle and, after getting a little outpaced in the straight, ran on strongly to land the spoils. That was over two and a half miles, and the step up to three miles will really suit.
1:25 The Greek
2:00 Saeer
2:35 Rags Kitten
3:10 Ally Cay
3:45 Seanbhothar
4:20 Chesterville (nb)
4:55 Top Bandit
1:25 The Banger Doyle
2:00 Dazzling Darren
2:35 Fassbender
3:10 Mars Harper
3:45 Withallduerespect
4:20 Jack Fiasco
4:55 Mary Meehan
4:40 HMS Endeavour (nap)
5:10 Takana
5:45 Mokhalad
6:15 Caesar’s Comet
6:45 Skontonovski
7:15 Pin Your Hopes
7:45 Benaud
8:15 Smaoineamh Sile
4:40 Pennine Hills
5:10 Redbud
5:45 Linus Larrabee
6:15 Miss Cunning
6:45 The Bog Bank
7:15 Blue Shadow
7:45 Leo De Fury
8:15 Clew Bay
