THE first Group race of the new season promises to continue a tradition. For years, Vincent O'Brien seat potential champions from his Ballydoyle yard to contest the Gladness Stakes, named after his 1958 Ascot Gold Cup heroine, and the likes of El Gran Senor and Lomond turned their potential into classic success. Today, the new man at Ballydoyle, Aidan O'Brien, tries to follow suit.
Desert King is the colt that O'Brien hopes will graduate from this race into a potential classic winner. A Group One winner already over today's course and distance in last September's National Stakes, Desert King subsequently disappointed when managing only a sixth to In Command in Newmarket's Dewhurst Stakes but that was forgivable after quite a busy first season. More important than that is how well this scopey colt has wintered and the word from Ballydoyle is encouraging.
Yesterday, O'Brien said: "The horse has done well and is a more mature sort now. He's in all the Guineas and will improve from the race but I don't think the ground or the trip will be a problem to him in the Gladness."
That ability to act on the ground could be significant as the Curragh going is firming up so quickly that the executive have already been forced into watering. Desert King won his National Stakes on fastish going and should appreciate today's surface more than his most likely danger, the four-year-old My Branch.
Barry Hills' filly put up her best performance last season in the Irish 1,000 Guineas when third to Matiya on a yielding surface. Afterwards she disappointed slightly but is a filly who runs well when fresh and will be a decent baromoter to Desert King's classic aspirations. Desert King though should be up to passing the Gladness test.
O'Brien and stable jockey Christy Roche have started the season in typically efficient form and Desert King can complete a treble for them.
The clear form choice in the opening Martinstown EBF Maiden is Northern Royal who ran Flame Violet to three-parts of a length here six days ago. However, Flame Violet is one of O'Brien's colossal team of juveniles and he should know exactly the merits of his newcomer Harbour Master in relation to Flame Violet.
Harbour Master is certainly bred to be an early season type, being by Bluebird, and looks a more likely winner than Northern Royal or the Last Tycoon colt, Porcellino.
The ground can also play a vital role in the Curragh Annual Badge Handicap which sees four of the first seven which contested a six-furlong handicap here six days ago re oppose. Maytpleasethecourt was an impressive winner from Three Musketeers on that occasion but over a furlong shorter today, and on faster ground, O'Brien's Best Before Dawn can improve from fourth last time to the winners spot now. A five-time winner last year, significant improvement can be expected from Best Before Dawn today.
The Dermot Weld-Michael Kinane team are traditionally slower to get into top gear but they can kick start their year with a treble of their own.
Admittedly all are newcomers but so was Zagreb when he made his first start a winning one in last year's Cill Dara Maiden. This year, the Weld runner in the race is the Sheikh Hamdan owned Shi-Ar, a Royal Academy colt who holds an Epsom Derby entry. This chestnut has been catching the eye on the Curragh gallops recently and is confidently expected to go close, at the very least, today.
Lady Shannon is Kinane's pick in the Glenageary Maiden and the hint for this daughter of Mr Prospecter and the high-class sprinter Flowing is worth following.
The conditions of the April Fillies Race, with a 7lb penalty for winners and a 5lb allowance for maidens, hardly makes it an encouraging race for the topweight Orange Grouse. Others with racecourse form are hardly an awe- inspiring bunch either and it would be no surprise to see the Affirmed filly Magical Cliche use the conditions to overcome her inexperience.
By Charlie Allen ran so well in the Lincoln that the extra quarter, mile of the Sunnyhill Handicaps" should suit him down to the ground and Jamie Spencer's mount should disrupt the Weld-O'Brien domination of the day.
