3:45 – P W McGrath Memorial Ballysax Stakes (Group 3)
Aiden O’Brien has won this race a record 11 times and so we need to respect anything that Ballydoyle run here, but close behind him is Jim Bolger with 7 wins in the race and at an each-way price, that could bring SERIOUS CHALLENGE into this. A winner on soft ground at Galway in July, he was less than 4-lengths behind current Derby favourite Auguste Rodin in the Champion Juvenile at Leopardstown last September.
He was beaten in a small field on his comeback at Naas last week, but he travelled strongly into the race before tiring in the tacky ground. That run should have blown away any cobwebs and with a decent record in the race, he could run well for the yard.
5:30 – Sunday 7th May Leopardstown Family Day Handicap
Quite a few of these have been running on the all-weather at Dundalk, but with soft ground forecast it will be a completely different test, which could suit CLIFFTOP. A 3-time winner on the turf, he has been off the track since getting the better of Ellaat in a Bellewstown Handicap in September.
He returns on a 6lb higher mark, but this race looks weaker than his Bellewstown success and a mark of 53 is not insurmountable. A winner here in the past, he ran a solid race on his comeback in this race last season and offers some fair each-way value.
