Curragh
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Velo Coffee Handicap
Starts in
Awaiting result
All Runners — sorted by TrackLab Score
Good Value
TrackLab Insight
Spanish Temptress has the best career win rate in the field — winning roughly 1 in every 5 races — and just missed out by a whisker last time, beaten a head at Limerick. The catch is that her two wins have both come on soft or wet ground, and she has never won on normal conditions, making today's surface a genuine question mark.
Best record at this trip (2 from 7)
Best career win rate in field (1 in 5)
TrackLab Insight
Summer Island is the market favourite at 6/1 and arrives having won right here at the Curragh just 20 days ago, making this horse the form pick of the race. The only note of caution is a record of zero wins from three attempts on soft ground — but conditions are normal today, which is exactly what this horse wants.
Market favourite (6.0)
Good Value
TrackLab Insight
Like Blues Emperor, Highbury See See is one of the rare course winners in this field, which counts for plenty at a track where familiarity matters. Unusually, the jockey is also the trainer — Andrew Slattery rides his own horse — and that combination has produced 83 wins together from 834 races, so he knows this horse better than anyone.
Has won over this course and distance
TrackLab Insight
Java Wood is the editor's pick for this race, and the weight advantage is the reason why — rated 9lbs below the field average and carrying the lowest weight, the 7lb claim from jockey Julian Pietropaolo effectively gives this horse a significant headstart over better-rated rivals. The catch is a record of zero wins from four attempts on normal ground, which is the one cloud over what is otherwise a compelling each-way case.
Lowest rated, 9lbs below average
Carries lowest weight in field
Good Value
TrackLab Insight
With just three career races to her name, Pretty Omagh Girl is the least exposed horse in the field alongside Grecian Power — that means plenty of unknown potential, but also very little evidence to go on. She has yet to win and is returning from a five-month break, so punters are essentially being asked to take a lot on trust.
Lightly raced (3 career races)
TrackLab Insight
Greek Flower is one of only a handful of course winners in this field, but the standout concern is a record of zero wins from 12 attempts on normal ground — every career win has come on soft or wet conditions. With the track riding normally today, the course form counts for less than it looks on the surface.
One of few course winners (1 wins here)
TrackLab Insight
Merlin the Wizard has a solid record on normal ground — winning 2 from 8 attempts, or 1 in 4 — which suits today perfectly, and the distance of a mile falls right in his wheelhouse. The flag here is a new jockey pairing for the first time, which always introduces a small unknown in a big field like this.
One of the more successful in the field (3 career wins)
TrackLab Insight
The key selling point here is that Blues Emperor has actually won over this course and distance — one of only a handful in this field who can say that. However, recent form is poor, finishing 4th, 8th, and 13th in his last three races, and the jockey-trainer partnership has produced zero wins from four attempts together.
Has won over this course and distance
TrackLab Insight
Neo Smart is one of the course winners in this field but has managed just 2 wins from 32 races overall — roughly 1 in every 16 — which is a modest return for a five-year-old. Recent form shows a 7th and a 9th in the last two completed runs, and the market at 17/1 reflects those concerns.
One of few course winners (1 wins here)
TrackLab Insight
Zaraahmando has three career wins and a 33% win rate on normal ground, which looks promising for today — but a 13th-place finish at Roscommon just 13 days ago is hard to ignore. The record on left-handed tracks like the Curragh also shows zero wins from five attempts, which is a pattern worth noting.
One of the more successful in the field (3 career wins)
TrackLab Insight
Hexagonal has never raced on normal ground — every career outing has come on a different surface — so like Thaloria, today is completely new territory. Eight races without a win but four placed efforts show a horse that competes, though stepping into unknown conditions in a 20-runner field makes this a difficult one to back with confidence.
Never raced on normal ground
TrackLab Insight
Rated 10lbs above the field average, Summer Snow carries one of the highest marks in this race but has drifted to 29/1 in the market — a puzzling combination. The record on normal ground is the real problem: zero wins from five attempts on this type of surface, despite a solid 33% win rate on good or yielding ground. Hard to trust here given the conditions don't suit.
Best record on this ground (4 from 12)
Unfancied in the market despite a high rating
TrackLab Insight
Thaloria has never raced on normal ground before — every run in her career has come on different conditions — so today is genuinely uncharted territory for this horse. She has shown some ability, including a runner-up finish at Dundalk, but asking a horse to handle brand-new conditions in a 20-runner race is a risk.
Never raced on normal ground
TrackLab Insight
Navagio has a Curragh win on his record, but the last six completed runs show finishes of 6th, 15th, 15th, 18th, 12th, and 5th — a deeply worrying sequence that suggests this horse is well past his best. A record of zero wins from six attempts on normal ground makes today's conditions another obstacle.
One of few course winners (1 wins here)
TrackLab Insight
Va Va Vroom is rated 6lbs above the field average but has drifted to 29/1, suggesting the market has little confidence despite the official mark. With just one win from nine races and a run at Cork 21 days ago with the result unknown, there is simply not enough evidence to make a strong case here.
Unfancied in the market despite a high rating
TrackLab Insight
Grecian Power has raced just three times and is yet to win, making her the joint-least experienced runner in the field. The best run came on her final appearance before a long absence — a 3rd at the Curragh over a year ago — but two poor efforts since suggest that promise has been difficult to recapture.
Lightly raced (3 career races)
TrackLab Insight
No More Porter is the most experienced horse in the field by a distance — 48 races compared to a field average of 17 — but has won just once in all that time, roughly 1 in every 48 attempts. Returning from over five months off the track and with zero wins recorded on any ground type, this is one for the record books rather than the shortlist.
Most experienced (48 runs, field avg 17)
TrackLab Insight
This horse has been off the track for 234 days — the longest absence of any runner in the field — and returns without any obvious prep race to shake off the rust. Rated 4lbs above average, the ability may be there on paper, but coming back after nearly eight months is a significant ask in a competitive 20-runner race.
Absent 234 days (longest in field)
Unfancied in the market despite a high rating
TrackLab Insight
Albion Power carries the lowest official rating alongside Hexagonal and Java Wood, sitting 7lbs below the field average, which tells you this horse is operating at the bottom end of the weights. Both career wins have come at Dundalk — a very different type of track to the Curragh — so there is a real question about whether the form will translate here.
Outsider at 29.0
TrackLab Insight
Liberate won a Class 2 race at Goodwood, which is a notably high level for a horse now running in a race like this — but three consecutive 10th, 9th, and 10th place finishes since suggest something has gone wrong since that career highlight. At 67/1, the market has made its verdict clear, and the recent form makes it difficult to argue.
Placed in 2 of last 3 races
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