Mighty mudlovers - here are five horses set to relish the testing conditions on the opening night at Galway
It is going to be very hard work for the first of seven days at Galway with the going now soft on the jumps track and heavy on the Flat course following 21mm of rain over the last 24 hours. Here are five horses who should relish the testing conditions.
Paddy Power free bet offer
Join Paddy Power today and get £20 cash back
New customers only. Place your FIRST bet on any market at odds of min 2.0 (EVS) and if it loses we will refund your stake in CASH. Max refund for this offer is £20. Only deposits made using cards will qualify for this promotion. T&Cs apply.
Ahead Of The Posse
5.40 Galway: Easyfix Handicap Hurdle
Just one win to his name from ten starts but that victory came on heavy ground at Tramore on New Year's Day in a 2m handicap hurdle. Gavin Cromwell has opted to put a pair of blinkers on for the first time and he has been nibbled at in the market too, into 17-2 (from 10) with Ladbrokes.
Dutch Schultz
6.40 Galway: Connacht Hotel (Q.R.) Handicap
Dutch Schultz is two from three on the Flat when the word heavy has appeared in the going description. He won his maiden on bottomless ground at Newbury when trained by Ralph Beckett, albeit only after the first passed the post was disqualified with a banned substance found in his system. He also bolted up in a 1m6f handicap at Gowran Park back in 2021 on soft to heavy ground, drawing right away to win by eight lengths under Gary Carroll.
Zinc White
6.40 Galway: Connacht Hotel (Q.R.) Handicap
Also in the Connacht Hotel Handicap, sole British raider Zinc White has posted all three of his victories on soft ground, with three of his four best RPRs coming on an easy surface. He posted an RPR of 95 when scooting clear to win the Chester Cup consolation race in May on ground that was officially soft. The more mud the merrier for him it seems.
The Snapper
7.15 Galway: Claytonhotelgalway.ie Handicap
Conditions are most certainly coming right for the gelding named after one of the most famous Irish films of all time. It was soft to heavy at Cork when he opened his account in a 7f handicap in May and he justified strong support to win a Navan sprint this month on soft ground too. He began the day at 5-1 with bet365, but has been supported into 100-30.
Teorie
Made it fourth time lucky in a 1m2f maiden at Leopardstown this month where he relished the testing conditions under an aggressive ride from Luke McAteer. Posted a career best RPR of 88 there and runs in his first handicap off a mark of just 81. Now 6-1 (from 7) with Paddy Power.
Read these next:
Defending champion Hewick to face a full field in Wednesday's Galway Plate
Racing Post Members' Club: subscribe for just £9.99 this summer
- 'The crowds were up and the buzz was brilliant' - Galway boss hails seven-day festival a huge success
- Galway: 'I never really had a worry' - Dunum dominates Ahonoora after Tuesday's near miss
- 'I just can’t wait for Naas' - Wesley Joyce relishing return to saddle a year after suffering fall at Galway
- Glorious Goodwood and the Galway festival: which horses caught the eye of our experts in the past week?
- Galway: 'It worked out great' - Ambitious Fellow lands Saturday feature to keep Peter Fahey's memorable week going
- 'The crowds were up and the buzz was brilliant' - Galway boss hails seven-day festival a huge success
- Galway: 'I never really had a worry' - Dunum dominates Ahonoora after Tuesday's near miss
- 'I just can’t wait for Naas' - Wesley Joyce relishing return to saddle a year after suffering fall at Galway
- Glorious Goodwood and the Galway festival: which horses caught the eye of our experts in the past week?
- Galway: 'It worked out great' - Ambitious Fellow lands Saturday feature to keep Peter Fahey's memorable week going