Racing: There will be racing at Leopardstown today but there will be no Duke Of Marmalade in action as unsuitable ground means he will miss the Irish Champion Stakes.
The card, featuring the Tattersalls Millions Irish Champion Stakes, was given the green light after a dry night saw the course improve dramatically.
"They were supposed to inspect at 7.30am but it has dried up so much they looked earlier," said Cliff Noone of the Irish Turf Club.
"Unbelievably the ground is yielding, yielding to soft in places and it is a lovely morning here.
"From lunchtime onwards on Saturday it was dry and warm and if it stays like this everything will be hunky dory.
However, news filtered through from the track at around 9.30am that Aidan O'Brien had pulled Duke of Marmalade, his five-time Group One winner, out of a second mouth-watering clash with New Approach.
"Unfortunately Duke Of Marmalade is a non-runner," said Leopardstown's general manager Tom Burke.
"But a least we are racing which is the main thing."