Attention switches from Cheltenham to start of new flat season

Aidan O’Brien will be represented in the three maidens on the card. And highly-tried filly Signora might prove the best bet on a card which boasts 135 runners.

Sat, 14 Mar, 2026 - 08:10

John Ryan

With the 2026 Cheltenham festival already behind us, attention switches to the opening of the new flat season at the Curragh tomorrow.

Aidan O’Brien will be represented in the three maidens on the card. And highly-tried filly Signora might prove the best bet on a card which boasts 135 runners.

This Frankel filly, a full-sister to Group 3 winner and Group 1-placed Exactly, showed plenty of talent in two outings as a juvenile and, expected to return a stronger, more mature filly, she makes plenty of appeal in the Mental Health Matters Fillies Maiden.

Signora was a 12/1 shot for her debut in the Group 3 Coolmore Stud Fillies Sprint at Naas last May and proved a real eye-catcher, staying on in the closing stages to finish third, beaten two and a half lengths, behind the speedy, Ger Lyons-trained Lady Iman, a four-time winner, currently rated 104, and subsequent Group 2 winner Green Sense.

On the strength of that promising debut effort, Signora was sent off 15/8 favourite for another Group 3, the Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot.

But, having chased the leaders, she faded in the closing stages to finish ninth, beaten about six and a half lengths, behind Venetian Sun - subsequent Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf heroine Balantina finished third.

Such form stands out in the context of a filly’s maiden on the opening day of the new campaign. And, if she has wintered well and is close to peak fitness, Signora should open her account before potentially fulfilling one of her Guineas entries.

Market support for the Ballydoyle runners in the other maidens would be significant, with the Wootton Bassett colt Scientific catching the eye in the Final Furlong Podcast Maiden.

Earlier, O’Brien’s Monmouth faces a tough rival in Michael O’Callaghan’s Breaking Dawn in the Nua CLaD Hub Maiden.

This colt shaped with promise when fourth in a couple of Naas maidens last autumn and, in first-time cheekpieces, might have the edge.

Twenty-six will contest the featured, €100,000 Nua Healthcare Irish Lincoln. And with Ryan Moore in the saddle, the Tony Martin-trained Orandi should make a bold bid to repeat last year’s win.

He swooped late to deny Kortez Bay twelve months ago before filling third spot behind Godwinson in the English equivalent at Doncaster. And he finished third to Dunum in the Galway Mile.

At his best with plenty of cut in the ground and 6lb higher than last year, Orandi is no more than a hopeful choice in a tricky affair.

Others to note include John Kinsella’s Engines On, a dual course-winner and a close third to Jagged Edge in the Irish Cambridgeshire last August, and the Kevin Coleman-trained mare Akecheta, also at her best in testing conditions.

SELECTIONS

1.25.Force Noir

2.00.Breaking Dawn (n.b.)

2.35.Tai Tam Bay

3.10.Unique Journey

3.45.Signora (Nap)

4.20.Orandi

4.55.Scientific

5.30.Kakori

Next Best

1.25.Lara Soldier

2.00.Monmouth