Irish racing tips: Tony Keenan best bets for today at the Curragh

Horse Racing

Sun August 09, 2026 · 4w ago

Tony Keenan returns with a preview of the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes card at the Curragh.

Irish racing tips: Sunday August 09

0.5pt win Voice Of You in the Curragh 13:45 (14/1 General)

0.5pt e.w. Tribeca in the Curragh 16:00 (25/1 Bet365, 22/1 General)

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This year’s Keeneland Phoenix Stakes (16:00) is a strange race. It looks weaker than usual, just two of the eight runners having won their last start, but more than that it seems to have drawn several horses that look better over further than six furlongs, especially at the front of the market.

Sun Goddess is one of those, and she was a little underwhelming last time too, the runner-up shaping at least as well as her in the Airlie Stud Stakes. Folsom Blues and Celeron may be seven-furlong types already, though could get away with this trip in a sub-standard Group 1.

Celeron won the obvious trial for this, the Railway Stakes, in good style though that race was run to suit, the Ballydoyle pacemaker Carry The Flag setting the race up for him and he is in the field again here. However, the cheekpieces have been taken off and I am not sure the Tipperary superpower will want to do that again for a promising colt outside the yard.

Today’s pace setup might suit TRIBECA more. He was runner-up to Celeron last time and travelled best but paid for chasing an overly strong pace while may not have been suited by racing solo up the near side as the rest of the field came up the middle. His maiden win from earlier in the year has worked out well and it is easy to forgive his Ascot disappointment over a trip too sharp.

There could be another vulnerable Aidan O’Brien-trained favourite in the Grand Hotel Malahide Irish EBF Fillies Juvenile Race at 13:45. This is a race with unusual conditions, the unraced fillies getting an allowance, and Ibelieveicanfly did things wrong on her penultimate start at a time when she should be learning. The hood goes on now, but her attitude is under suspicion.

Admired Beauty has a good chance of upholding form with her, while Speckles might be most interesting from that race. She was green for much of the contest, but the penny was dropping late and nothing finished better.

At the prices, however, VOICE OF YOU looks the best value. She is coming from a strong maiden at Leopardstown, the form of that race boosted by the second and third in stakes company since, and was an eye-catcher then.

Slowly away, she raced a touch detached early but made up a huge amount of ground in the straight, faster than the well-regarded and impressive winner in the final three furlongs. It is a slight concern that she remains with her small yard still, a run like that seeming sure to have attracted the attention of bigger operations, but she is worth a chance at the price.

The other Group race on the card, the FBD Hotels and Resorts Phoenix Sprint Stakes (15:25), is weak, Big Mojo looking the class act in the field but not at his best so far this year. Bodhi Bear may get more competitive than his odds suggest while both sprint handicaps look difficult.

The final race, the Money Back Daily Specials with Tote.ie Handicap at 17:10, is more interesting. Kalir has had a stop-start career but looked well suited by a mile on decent ground last time at Killarney, doing well to come from off a steady pace to beat a gambled-on front-runner that got the run of the race.

He has the look of one that might be better suited to handicaps than maidens, and it was unusual that Chris Hayes mentioned this race for him afterwards as it is just another good handicap rather than an obvious target. Dermot Weld has won this race four times since 2008, however, and is a trainer that likes to do repeat business so it could be a plan worth noting.

Preview published at 08:15 BST on 09/08/26

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