Irish Stallion Farms EBF (C & G) Maiden (Plus 10)

Off time: 16:25 | Winning time: 1m 53.26s

(1)

Bell Ex One¹⁷

Age: 2| Weight: 9-2| J: Chris Hayes| T: R P Cody

66/1

Excelebration gelding. Rank outsider on debut start and ran accordingly when 17L ninth at Leopardstown (7f, good) last month. Plenty more needed in this company and might be one for handicapping in time.

Form: 9

(6)

Dontspillthestout

Age: 2| Weight: 9-2| J: Billy Lee| T: A Oliver

25/1

Cheap €4,500 yearling purchase by Lawman. Half-brother to 1m2f winner Vita Venturi and Do The Bosanova (1m2f). Closely related to smart performer Jet Streaming. Nice enough pedigree but might bump into a smart one in this. Market check.

Form:

(5)

Fourhometwo

Age: 2| Weight: 9-2| J: Ben Coen⁽³⁾| T: J P Murtagh

12/1

€55,000 yearling. Dam was a winner over 1m4f and is a half-brother to 1m AW winner Elenora Delight and closely related to group winners, including 1m3f scorer Knight To Behold. Yard remain in good enough form and notable if there is market support.

Form:

(2)

Roman Empire

Age: 2| Weight: 9-2| J: M C Hussey| T: A P O'Brien

5/1

Galileo colt. Half-brother to Group 1 winner Sudirman (6f), Mount Fuji (5f) and Rayyan (1m). Dam was a US stakes winner between 5f to 1m. Has a fine blend of speed and stamina and looks the pick of the contest on racecourse debut.

Form:

(4)

Skilled Warrior

Age: 2| Weight: 9-2| J: Rory Cleary| T: J P Murtagh

20/1

€37,000 yearling. Holy Roman Emperor colt. Half-brother to 1m2f-1m4f winner Rumbo Norte and dam was a 1m juvenile winner in France. Pedigree is nice enough but looks to be the stable's second string and may come on for this.

Form:

(3)

Southern Cape¹⁷

Age: 2| Weight: 9-2| J: Wayne Lordan| T: Donnacha O'Brien| BF

1/4

Bred to be a top-level performer and showed likeable signs on debut when narrow second at Leopardstown (7f, good) in June. This type tend to come on significantly for their first starts and should be hard to be beat in this if coming forward.

Form: 2

Forecasts

Southern Cape (1/4), Roman Empire (5/1), Fourhometwo (12/1), Skilled Warrior (20/1), Dontspillthestout (25/1), Bell Ex One (66/1)

SOUTHERN CAPE showed very good signs of his natural ability on debut and likely exceeded expectations when a narrow runner-up. His regal pedigree suggests that he is a highly-regarded individual and should be able to take this in his stride before being campaigned at loftier targets for his classic-winning trainer. Roman Empire has a similarly likeable profile and whatever he achieves on this start, he should improve greatly for down the line, while Fourhometwo has a profile that suggests he will be better over further in time but the strong start to his trainer, Johnny Murtagh, season means that he cannot be discounted in what looks a strong maiden.