Carlingford Stakes Tips & Betting Preview

Race Time: 8.05pm Meeting: Dundalk Day: Friday 16th October
Distance: 1m 2f 150yds Full Race Name:  Carlingford Stakes (Listed Race)

An interesting Listed races in prospect this evening on the Dundalk all-weather track with Mark Johnston seriously considering sending the classy Fire Fighting (Evens) here where the four year old son of Soldier Of Fortune will be forced to give weight away to some intriguing youngsters on the up and up. His record in Group races saw a few places but no successes this season but a drop in to a Class Three Conditions race at Chelmsford on the all-weather as a confidence booster last time out saw a comfortable two-length success ahead of a return to this higher level event. Four of his seven career victories have been over this trip so we can have no arguments there, and with solid recent form on board he should prove very difficult to beat.

Unsinkable (3/1) comes next on the list according to the ratings anyway and it seems reasonable to expect a big run from Ger Lyons’ five year old who has won four races from his twenty-two starts, including one over this distance at Navan. That said, he is really no better than your average handicapper as far as we can see and was last of three to Panama Hat and Carla Bianca her last time out and we feel there ought to be others with better chances.

Trainer John Joseph Murphy is represented this year by Hot Sauce (10/1) who may not be the best horse in the race but does get weight as a three year old son of Peintre Celebre. One maiden win at Gowran Park is all she can muster on the wins front but she was second to the decent Speedy Boarding at Newbury back in June is pretty decent form and if repeating that effort here on the all-weather surface she must have a decent chance of getting a place at the very least.

Amazingly, there is so little strength in depth here for a Listed race that we are even looking at a maiden to get competitive with Melanna (100/1) who will be ridden by Chris Hayes for the second time today. A four year old daughter of Camacho she has raced six times without success, three in bumpers and three on the flat, but been placed twice in her last two races and although a complete outsider, she is a lively one and could finish with a few behind her at the very least.

If we go looking for a bang in form contender then we have to head over to the Patrick Harney yard and hat trick scoring Johann Bach (16/1), the winner of three consecutive handicaps at Gowran Park, Galway, and The Curragh. This does represent a big step up in class and he did run a mere five days ago which has to be a concern, but if the stable choose to strike while the iron is hot who was we to think he cannot take in his stride, especially with a past course and distance win already to his name? He has gone up a massive twenty six pounds since his winning run started which reduces his options back in handicap grade, but it would still be a big shock were he good enough to take this today.