The top French jockey Olivier Peslier will ride Bernstein for Aidan O'Brien in Saturday's Sagitta 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket and he has also come in for the mount on Warrior Queen in the following day's 1,000 Guineas.
Peslier has ridden an apparent Ballydoyle understudy to Classic success before when Saffron Walden landed last year's Irish 2,000 Guineas and will be hoping lightning can strike twice on the Storm Cat colt who will be making his seasonal debut.
Peslier travelled to Co Tipperary to ride work on Saturday, after which stable jockey Michael Kinane indicated he will be on the Gladness winner Giant's Causeway in the 2,000 and the Leopardstown scorer Amethyst in the 1,000.
Saffron Walden is not the only high profile horse that Peslier has ridden for O'Brien before as he partnered Brahms into second place in the Dewhurst Stakes last autumn behind the current 2,000 Guineas favourite Distant Music.
The news seems to confirm that the unbeaten Monashee Mountain, currently quoted as low as 10 to 1 for Newmarket, will miss the race especially since the Danzig colt will take his chance against just three opponents in today's Group Three Desert King Tetrarch Stakes at the Curragh.
The O'Brien horse is already a winner at this grade and made a very encouraging re-introduction in the Loughbrown Race last month when giving 7lb and a beating to the subsequent Cork winner Jammaal.
It looked a good effort at the time and there is no doubt Monashee Mountain would be a viable contender at Newmarket. In this context, against the Leopardstown runner-up Legal Jousting and the Nursery scorer Anzari, he looks different class.
Urban Ocean is the Ballydoyle runner in the second of the day's other black type race, the Listed Mooresbridge Stakes. He's one of just three older horses in the yard but if he happened to be beaten on this occasion by Tarry Flynn then not too many tears will be shed by O'Brien or Kinane.
Tarry Flynn did after all run Giant's Causeway closest of all in the Gladness but it would be wrong to believe this race is just between two and maybe Quws is a value alternative to both.
The 1997 Blandford and 1998 Gallinule winner went to Dubai where he didn't particularly thrive and returned for just one race in Ireland last year. This season he not surprisingly didn't figure in the Lincoln but today's trip is ideal, as is soft ground, and with a rating of 107 he theoretically has almost half a stone in hand of Tarry Flynn and Urban Ocean.
The other black type event is the Athasi where Alluring will probably start favourite after her very easy eight-length maiden win at Listowel. She looked a different filly to last year on that occasion but may not be value to cope with Aretha who was five lengths off Amethyst at Leopardstown. However, the Jim Bolger-trained filly was badly interfered with early and otherwise would have been a clear runnerup. Amethyst's Guineas claims can get a boost.
Bolger can also take the mile maiden with Teach Beaumont who only dropped away at the furlong pole behind Media Puzzle and may be better suited by this trip while Dermot Weld can double up with Commanche Saddle and La Stellina.
The nap, however, goes to Stillanall who finished best of all behind Banrion at Cork after a slow start and is well drawn on the far side alongside the dual Cork winner Sparkling Harmony who looks the danger.
Stage Affair will bypass the opening of the Punchestown Festival tomorrow and instead wait for the Shell Champion Hurdle on Friday. Trainer Dermot Weld confirmed the decision yesterday and said: "The ground should be better at that time of the week." Stage Affair finished runner-up to Istabraq in the AIG but disappointed in the Champion Hurdle at Cheltenham. The going at the Co Kildare track is currently "soft".
