Best Bets for 2000 Guineas Day at the Curragh

The first Classic of the Irish Flat season takes place today at the Curragh as the Colts go in search of glory in the Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas.

The race falls three weeks after the English equivalent and often affords an opportunity to the Newmarket winner to stamp his authority on the division or, as is the case this time around, for some of the horses that were beaten at Newmarket to seize the day and gain an elusive Classic victory.

Leading bookmakers BoyleSports have a great offer for both new and existing customers betting on races at the Curragh today. If you place a bet on any race with 5 or more runners and your horse finishes second the SP favourite BoyleSport will refund up to €20 of your stake as a free bet. There are some additional T&Cs relating to this offer which can be viewed by clicking here.

Four horses that finished behind Chaldean at Newmarket line up today including the runner-up Hi Royal, the third home Royal Scotsman and the fourth placed Galeron.

Hi Royal should in theory beat those that were behind him in Newmarket, but the fact he drifted alarmingly to his left in the closing stages there is a worry on a wide-open track like the Curragh.

Connections of Royal Scotsman have paid a supplementary entry to run here and must fancy their chances of reversing the form with Hi Royal. Royal Scotsman didn’t get the clearest of passages in the Newmarket race and finished strongly to get within half a length of the runner up at the line.

Galeron was hampered at the start of the Newmarket Guineas and did well under the circumstances to finish in fourth place, but still has some three lengths to find with the other pair today.

Of the home brigade Paddington trained by Aidan O’Brien must be highly respected. O’Brien has won this race a record 11 times and this colt arrives off the back of three victories, including last time over the course and distance but that was on very different ground condition to this afternoon.

The ground is likely to be a key factor in today’s race as it will be significantly quicker than the English challengers faced at Newmarket. With that in mind it could well pay to side with Donnacha O’Brien’s Proud And Regal.

The son of Galileo was beaten on his seasonal debut at Leopardstown where the combination of testing ground and a longer trip exposed his stamina frailties. Back on a sound surface and racing over two furlongs shorter should see Proud and Regal in a much better light and he can continue the strong start to the season for his stable.

Elsewhere on today’s card at the Curragh there are two strong British-trained contenders for the Group 2 Greenland Stakes in Art Power and Garrus.

Tim Easterby’s Art Power is a regular visitor to Ireland and has won on all three previous visits including twice at Group 3 level over this course and distance. If he is to keep his unbeaten Irish record intact he will need to shrug off a below par effort in a similar contest at York ten days ago, but as that was his seasonal debut it is entirely feasible.

Preference however is for the Charles Hills-trained Garrus who arrives here off the back of a Group 3 victory at Newmarket last month. Ryan Moore is in the saddle and knows the grey well having won on him four times previously, including last time out, and the quicker the ground the better for the gelded son of Acclamation.

The Group 3 Marble Hill Stakes for two-year-olds is an all-Irish affair with a field of six set to face the starter. Five of the sextet won on debut and for the entire field this will be the first time they have raced on quick ground on grass, so it’s difficult to pick a selection with any confidence. That said, Willie Browne’s all-weather winner Buyin Buyin is interesting. He fell out of stalls on debut at Dundalk over 5 furlongs, but ran out a ready winner. Seamie Heffernan who rode one of the Aidan O’Brien pair, His Majesty, to victory now switches allegiances and rides Buyin Buyin who was snapped up by Gaelic thoroughbreds after his successful debut.