Just a sextet will take up the challenge of facing Camelot in Saturday’s
Group 1 Irish Derby at The Curragh, and that number could be diminished further
if there is more rainfall in Kildare.
One of those anxious about the current soft conditions is trainer Dermot
Weld, who is hoping that the ground dries out for Moyglare Stud’s Group 3
Gallinule Stakes winner Speaking of Which. After the going was described as
“heavy in places” as a result of 20 millimeters of rain on Wednesday night, the
Rosewell House-based conditioner told the Racing Post his charge will
likely not run if there is any more precipitation.
“The ground has become very testing and, if there is any more rain then,
Speaking of Which would have to be considered a very doubtful runner,” Weld
said. “He’s a top-of-the-ground horse and earned his place in the race when
winning the Gallinule Stakes by nine lengths last month. That was over a mile
and a quarter on fast ground. It is nobody’s fault that conditions have changed
overnight, but I want to let the public know the situation.”
John Oxx has left in a duo, with Born to Sea sporting first-time blinkers and
Jaber Abdullah’s Akeed Mofeed now to be ridden by William Buick after Niall
McCullagh was passed over.
“It’s fantastic to get such a good ride and I’m looking forward to it,” Buick
said. “He was a high-profile horse last year and it’s always a pleasure to get
these call-ups for such a good firm and such a nice horse.”
That colt’s troubled spring has been well-documented and it will be a tall
order for him to win on his first outing since finishing runner-up on extremely
testing ground in the Group 2 Beresford Stakes at the Curragh in September.
“He was a promising two-year-old last year and we had high hopes for him,”
Oxx told the Post. “He went through the winter fine, but took a lame step
10 days before the Group 3 Leopardstown Two Thousand Guineas Trial and it took
him a while to overcome that. Then we were aiming for the Group 2 Derrinstown
Stud Derby Trial and he pulled a muscle that week, so although they were fairly
minor things, it was seriously bad timing.
“So out of the last 12 weeks, he’s had almost six of those walking and
trotting and it’s not a great preparation. The last month has gone well and he
is working and moving very well, but he’s not match-fit. He’s fit enough to run
a good race and start off for the year and, hopefully, we’ll learn something.”
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