RACING NEWS:JOHNNY MURTAGH faces a transatlantic dash this weekend to ride at Tipperary on Sunday just hours after having ridden Black Bear Island in a Grade One at Arlington Park, Chicago, the night before.
Murtagh will team up with Aidan O’Brien’s Dante Stakes winner in the Secretariat Stakes and will be hoping for a happier time in the Windy City than last year.
The Irishman finished runner-up on Plan in last season’s Secretariat and could manage only third on Mount Nelson in a controversial Arlington Million on the same card.
Afterwards South African trainer Mike De Kock criticised Murtagh’s riding in the Million following an incident between Mount Nelson and runner-up Archipenko, but the pair later made up.
A trio of European horses will run in the Million this time, including Luca Cumani’s Cima de Triomphe and Walter Swinburn’s Stotsfold, but Murtagh will have to sit out the Saturday night feature.
Instead his focus will be on Black Bear Island, who was purchased from the Coolmore syndicate before his last start in the Grand Prix de Paris and will reportedly remain in the US after this weekend’s race.
The full-brother to the dual Derby and dual Breeders’ Cup champion High Chaparral is the sole European hopeful for the 10- furlong race, and his opposition is likely to include the American Derby winner, Reb.
“The plan is currently to ride Black Bear Island and then try to get back to Tipperary on Sunday to ride there,” said Murtagh’s agent, Eddie Byrne, yesterday. “He should be able to manage it. The fact that Shannon is so close to Tipperary will help and he won’t have to go through Dublin.”
Dermot Weld’s Mad About You will fly the Irish flag in Saturday night’s other Grade One at Arlington, the Beverly D Stakes, and there are two French-trained contenders, including the Aga Khan’s Alnadana, who won the Group Three Prix Messidor on her last start.
The other French hopeful is Criquette Head-Maarek’s Denomination, who ran third in a Group Three at Chantilly on her last start. The Beverly D is a race that Murtagh has fond memories of, having won it on the John Oxx-trained Timarida in 1996.
Sunday’s Tipperary feature is the Listed Coolmore Hurricane Run Stakes over seven furlongs for which 14 entries remain after yesterday’s forfeit stage. They include five Aidan O’Brien-trained juveniles, including the impressively bred Viscount Nelson.
The sole cross-sea-trained entry for the Tipperary race is Rod Millman’s Roi De Vitesse, while Kevin Prendergast has Alshahbaa, who also has the option of running in tomorrow night’s Group Two Debutante Stakes at Leopardstown.
Murtagh is at Gowran Park today, which shares an all-flat race evening with Sligo. But Pat Smullen goes West and the champion jockey can make the trip worthwhile by narrowing the gap to Murtagh in this year’s championship table.
Miss Chaparral ran into a tough one at Galway when a five-length runner-up to Blackstairmountain, but against her own gender in today’s 10-furlong maiden she should be hard to beat.
Dermot Weld also supplies Vivien Lee in the concluding handicap at Sligo, and soft ground should not be a worry to the topweight, while Smullen can also score for Jim Gorman in the juvenile claimer aboard Money Trader.
Incline, a four-time Sligo winner and a former McDonogh winner, is rated almost 30lb below his peak and the veteran can again make his presence felt here in the six-furlong handicap.
There was some initial disappointment after Separate Ways failed to overhaul Fit The Cove at the Galway Festival, but that form looks a lot better now that Fit The Cove has won again. David Marnane’s runner can get back on the winning trail in Gowran’s feature handicap.
Are You The One ran a fine race for a 25 to 1 shot at Galway when making a Weld hotpot in Precious Gem pull out all the stops. He has Alakhan to beat in the mile maiden now, but Pat Cody’s runner looks progressive.
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