The Co Tyrone trainer John Lambe bypasses his local meeting at Downpatrick and heads across to Cartmel with five runners.
If Lambe thought by this tactic to bypass horses with smart Irish form, it has misfired as Joey Dunlop, the first of five rides for Tommy Treacy, looks well held by the former John Mulhern trained Raunchy (2.15).
Tuska Ridge (4.0) looks the best prospect of the quintet for he won a handicap hurdle and a handicap chase at Navan during the winter.
The improved prize money on offer at Downpatrick has drawn runners from the top Curragh stables of Dermot Weld and John Oxx while Noel Meade, the champion National Hunt trainer, sends three horses north.
Naahil (2.30) may well be the first horse to contest a Downpatrick maiden hurdle, having on his previous outing been favourite at the big Galway meeting. He was hampered at the first and never regained his proper rhythm.
He has to represent better class than this while his stable companion Beyond The Pole was trying to concede so much weight to Mountain Star when fourth at Leopardstown that he can lift the money offered by Eastwoods.
Aidan O'Brien is hoping to run his star performers at Leopardstown and Haydock on September 7th as well as Longchamp the following day.,
"Rock Of Gibraltar could go to Leopardstown or to France for the Prix du Moulin. If Hawk Wing runs at Leopardstown in the Irish Champion Stakes, Sholokov would run there as well with Landseer possibly going to Haydock," he said. "High Chaparral is in the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown as well, but he might wait for Longchamp the following weekend in the Prix Niel. All this depends though on them staying healthy ," O'Brien stressed.
