RACING/KENTUCKY DERBY:NEWMARKET'S GUINEAS meeting takes place next weekend but Aidan O'Brien's classic ambitions are set to extend beyond Europe with Master Of Hounds lined up to run in the Kentucky Derby in two weeks' time.
It is nine years since O’Brien’s last attempt on America’s most famous race when both Johannesburg and Castle Gandolfo were unplaced but Ireland’s champion trainer is planning to bridge that gap with Master Of Hounds who just failed to win the UAE Derby at Meydan on his last start.
“At the moment the plan is to run Master of Hounds in the Kentucky Derby,” O’Brien said in the US. “He has a number of pieces of work to do before then and if everything goes well he will leave Ireland on Monday, May 2nd, and should arrive at Churchill Downs at approximately 11am on Tuesday, May 3rd.”
Reports also indicate Master Of Hounds could be joined at the Churchill Downs track by the four-year-old Jan Vermeer, third to Cape Blanco in last year’s Irish Derby, who has the Grade One Woodford Reserve Turf Classic Stakes as an option.
Master Of Hounds finished sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf at Churchill Downs last year and has never run on dirt before. However he was only beaten a short head at Meydan by Khawlah on the artificial Tapeta surface.
Ryan Moore rode the colt in Dubai but no riding arrangements for Kentucky have been firmed up.
Colm O’Donoghue will be on board Viscount Nelson in today’s Group Three Gordon Richards Stakes at Sandown where Michael Hourigan’s veteran Church Island bids to become just the third horse to win back-to-back renewals of the Bet 365 Gold Cup.
“This has been the plan since last year, and Adrian (Heskin) will ride him again. He likes it around there, and ran real well when fourth in the race the previous year. I still think he has that bit of spark in him but it will be tough carrying topweight,” Hourigan said yesterday.
Beautiful Sound a second reserve
FAVOURITE-BACKERS in Easter Monday’s €250,000 Ladbrokes Irish Grand National at Fairyhouse face a sweat on whether the heavily-backed Beautiful Sound gets a run after the Michael O’Leary-owned horse was made second reserve for the big race at yesterday’s final declaration stage, writes Brian O’Connor.
Beautiful Sound is as low as 5 to 1 in some ante-post lists for the National but failed to get a place among the maximum field of 25 runners and is dependent on two of the declared field coming out to get him a place in the race.
Trainer Gordon Elliott was hopeful yesterday the horse will get into the prestigious contest and the three reserves have until one hour before the first race on Monday’s Fairyhouse card to take advantage of any defections from the National.
A total of four British-trained runners have been declared including the JP McManus owned topweight, Synchronised. However Tony McCoy is set to ride another McManus runner, Quantativeeasing.
Champion trainer Willie Mullins has three declared runners and also Pomme Tiepy who is the first reserve.
The oldest horse in the race is A New Story who will be having his sixth consecutive start in the Irish National. The 13-year-old stalwart of Michael Hourigan’s yard has finished third twice and fourth on two occasions.
