Irish tips: Ben Dundee can make belated return to winning ways

Chiricahua might get off the mark over flights in the Tomcoole Farm Ltd Maiden Hurdle at Wexford

Ben Dundee, right, was just touched off by School Boy Hours at Leopardstown over Christmas. Picture: Healy Racing

Top-weight Ben Dundee might return to winning ways, for the first time since November 2018, in today’s Wexford feature, the Arctic Tack Stud Veterans Handicap Chase.

The 10-year-old, formerly trained by Gordon Elliott and Gearóid O’Loughlin, is now back where he started his racing career, with Andy Lynch.

His form includes a third to recent Gold Cup winner A Plus Tard in the Close Brothers at Cheltenham in 2019 and a narrow defeat by last year’s Grand National victor Minella Times in the 2019 Foxrock Cup at Navan.

Off the track for a year, he returned to action last March and managed to finish second to Battleoverdoyen in a conditions chase in Galway and fourth to Assemble in Listowel’s Kerry National.

More recently, he finished a very creditable second to School Boy Hours in the Paddy Power at Leopardstown over Christmas before making little impression in the Ultima at Cheltenham.

This looks a good opportunity for Ben Dundee and  Keith Donoghue’s mount gets the nod over the Edward O’Grady-trained The West’s Awake.

Earlier, Chiricahua, trained locally by Paul Nolan, might get off the mark over flights in the Tomcoole Farm Ltd Maiden Hurdle.

A dual-winner on the Flat for Ger Lyons, this fellow has filled the runner-up berth in two of his four hurdle starts, most recently when chasing home Gordon Elliott’s Ballykeel in Leopardstown.

With a rating of 120, Chiricahua should be good enough to win his maiden and is preferred to the consistent Lucky Tenner and the Elliott-trained Run For Pat, who is receiving a valuable 8lb from his two chief rivals.

And, having belatedly opened his account at Thurles last time, Rajsalad might follow-up for Conor and Charlie O’Dwyer in the three-mile Brendan Cullmore Electrical Novice Hurdle.

We also have polytrack action in Dundalk tonight where It’s Showtime Baby, a daughter of Showcasing, from Jessica Harrington’s yard, which supplied the first two-year-old winner of the season, is an unimaginative choice in the opening juvenile fillies' maiden.

Boasting a mark of 95, the Ken Condon-trained Warren Beach sets the standard in the BetVictor Proud To Support Irish Racing Maiden over just short of eleven furlongs.

His rating is based on his final juvenile start, when finishing in rear, but not beaten far in the Group 3 Eyrefield Stakes, won by Duke De Sessa at Leopardstown in October.

The Aclaim colt might have the edge over Ballydoyle runner Changingoftheguard, beaten a neck by stable-companion River Thames in a Punchestown maiden in September.

Ado McGuinness might continue his hot form with Inflection Point, runner-up to Ajax Tavern and Prisoner’s Dilemma in two of his three most recent outings on the polytrack, in the Bet Victor Loyalty Club App Claiming Race.

WEXFORD 

John Ryan 

4.00 Chiricahua 

4.30 Outback Flyer 

5.00 Rajsalad 

5.30 Kapard 

6.00 Ben Dundee (Nap) 

6.30 Crimson Chief 

7.00 Mr Bercow 

Next best 

4.00 Run For Pat 

4.30 Merry Moves 

5.00 Martha Divine 

5.30 Railway Hurricane 

6.00 The West’s Awake 

6.30 Four Country Roads 

7.00 Enduring Love

DUNDALK 

John Ryan 

5.20 It’s Showtime Baby 

5.50 Inflection Point 

6.20 Lady Of Luxury 

6.50 Rosscarbery 

7.20 Well Suited 

7.50 Warren Beach (NB)

8.20 Persian Wolf 

Next best 

5.20 Excelia 

5.50 Rocky Dreams 

6.20 Hammersmith 

6.50 Golden Lyric 

7.20 Coviglia 

7.50 Changingoftheguard 

8.20 Spirituoso