Ramruma has been made a 4 to 9 favourite to complete the English-Irish Oaks double at the Curragh on Sunday. The Henry Cecil-trained filly is one of just nine horses left in the fourth home classic of the season after Godolphin declined to supplement their Royal Ascot winner Fairy Queen yesterday.
It will be the first time since the 1997 Oaks that Godolphin will not have a runner in an Irish classic.
"There's nothing wrong with Fairy Queen. We just felt she needed a longer rest after her Ascot exertions. She will probably return later in the summer," said Godolphin spokesman Simon Crisford.
The connections of the Pretty Polly Stakes winner Polaire paid out £25,000 yesterday to supplement her for the big race and trainer Kevin Prendergast confirmed that apprentice Declan McDonogh will again take the ride.
"He has ridden her twice and won on her twice so why change the recipe. She won £46,000 in the Pretty Polly, so supplementing her is not that big a deal. It would be different if she had won nothing up to now," Prendergast said.
The Irish Oaks is one of the few big home races to elude Prendergast and he added: "Everyone will have to respect the English favourite, especially after the form shown by the winner of the Lancashire Oaks, but hopefully we can compete with, or beat, the rest."
Aidan O'Brien has left in Sunspangled and Carambola. He said: "I imagine only one will run and the ground will be a factor. Sunspangled would not like it faster than good."
Apart from Ramruma, the only other British-trained entry is Peter Chapple-Hyam's Mother Of Pearl, who ran fifth in the Prix St-Alary last time after being runner up in the Musidora.
The Jean de Roualle-trained Comillas is the only French runner left in. She hasn't raced since finishing last in the French 1,000 Guineas. Before that she had been fourth in a Group 3 at Longchamp.
Cashmans Bet: 4/9 Ramruma, 7/1 Polaire 12/ 1 Mother Of Pearl, Sister Bella & Sunspangled, 14/1 Carambola & Comillas, 25/1 Blend Of Pace, 50/1 Rose Of Tara.
Ciaran Kenelly, Irish racing's senior flat handicapper, will leave his Turf Club position towards the end of this season to become the senior handicapper in Hong Kong.
Kennelly has tendered his resignation to the Turf Club and will take up the prestigious new post on November 1st. The Turf Club chief executive Cahir O'Sullivan said yesterday that they will start the process of making alternative arrangements very soon.
"We would expect to have an alternative appointment in place for the start of the flat season in the year 2,000," O'Sullivan said. The position will be advertised by the Turf Club but they haven't ruled out making a short-term appointment while they seek the ideal replacement for Kennelly.
Kennelly, 50, from Dublin is currently in Hong Kong familiarising himself with the territory but is expected home by the weekend.
"We are very sorry to lose him but we wish Ciaran well," added O'Sullivan. "It is great tribute to him and to Irish racing. The Hong Kong Jockey Club is the most high-profile Jockey Club in the world. It may not be the best racing but there is nothing like it anywhere else in the world."
In other news yesterday, the Irish Horseracing Authority announced that owner entry fees on all races closing under the six-day entry system will be reduced to one per cent. This is a 0.25 per cent decrease and it is envisaged that the move will cut owners' costs by almost £400,000 in a full year.
