Racing Galway Festival The Galway festival maze has become even more trappy in recent years with the comparative drought endured by the Dermot Weld stable, Ballybrit's traditional powerhouse. But worse news yesterday was that Weld doesn't expect things to get better.
The Curragh trainer, home after Simple Exchange's victory in the Grade Two American Derby in Chicago on Saturday night, is seriously playing down any chance of repeating his best Galway festival score of 10 winners, which he has achieved four times in the last 11 years.
"It's highly unlikely," Weld declared before admitting that the festival is now of less significance compared to when he farmed races like tonight's juvenile maiden, which he has won 16 times.
"Things have simply changed for the better. Now the nature of prizemoney here throughout the year means that the days of setting one out specifically for Galway are gone.
"In the past a horse like Simple Exchange might have been kept for something like the McDonogh Handicap but now there is the whole local and international scene to consider," he said.
That new attitude is reflected in Weld's 2003 festival total of "only" four winners but it doesn't mean the Rosewell House team won't make their presence felt for the next seven days.
Direct Bearing and Ansar will try and supply Weld with a third success in Wednesday's Plate while Mutakarrim will go in Thursday's Hurdle.
As for day one, he has an interesting contender in the opening novice hurdle in Zeroberto, whose sole hurdles start to date yielded a reasonable third to the high-class Power Elite at Fairyhouse last February.
But the opening-day feature is the GPT Handicap, which has been a benefit in recent years for the Co Carlow trainer Pat Hughes. He has won three of the last four renewals of the race and this time has another clear contender in the Killarney hurdle winner Treculiar.
Pat Fahy interrupted the Hughes streak in 2002 with Quadco and it could be that Fahy is the man to follow again this time as he runs Sandy Owen.
The eight-year-old looked to have a perfect warm-up for this when beating The Last Hurrah at Killarney and has a versatility groundwise that can only help him.
An interesting jockey booking is the top lady rider Nina Carberry for Le Leopard while the former Galway Hurdle winner Say Again is an eyecatching runner at the bottom of the handicap. Sandy Owen, however, looks an each way option.
Weld unveils the Marju colt Bobs Pride in the seven-furlong maiden and he reports that the 42,000 purchase is "a big, strong colt who will appreciate a little give in the ground". His trainer's reputation will guarantee he figures prominently in the betting but Weld has actually only won this contest twice in the last seven years and it may pay to side with the racecourse experience of the Ballydoyle runner Trueheart.
Runner-up to Yarria over six furlongs at Naas on his debut, Trueheart should have improved for that and the stiff seven furlongs also looks suitable.
Eye Candy is 8lb higher in the ratings for a victory at Naas 19 days ago but the three-year-old was not extended to beat Tyndall by a couple of lengths and looks to hold a decent shout in the mile-and-a-half handicap.
Paul Carberry returns to action this week after injury and the former champion jockey can mark that with a success on board Athlumeny Lad, who boasted two wins in three days on the flat in May.
