10 March 2021
CONDON HOPING TO TEE OFF NEW IRISH FLAT SEASON IN STYLE IN PADDY POWER IRISH LINCOLNSHIRE, ONE OF THE MAINSTAYS OF THE IRISH RACING CALENDAR
At a time when the Cheltenham Festival is occupying racing fans’ minds, it shouldn’t be forgotten the opening of the Irish flat season takes place on Sunday, March 21 when local trainer Ken Condon is hoping to capture the feature Paddy Power Irish Lincolnshire courtesy of Teed Up.
After the weights were revealed for the race yesterday, when Teed Up was allotted 8st 13lb, he was installed 7-1 favourite by Paddy’s odds boffins, having won three of his last four starts, including a Galway handicap on his last outing in October by a neck from We’ll Go Again.
Condon said: “At the moment Teed Up is going for the Paddy Power Irish Lincolnshire, he’s to do a bit of work next Tuesday, but if it’s okay and we’re happy the intention is to run.
“Look I thought it was a good run at Galway – it was his second run in a handicap after his first run in a handicap at Tipperary. His profile is six starts, three wins and three seconds. He’s never hugely impressive, but he seems to know how to win.
“It will be harder as he creeps up the weights and going into this race is altogether a different task and challenge. The race is one of the mainstays of the Irish racing calendar and is very, very competitive.
“He’ll have to have improved from three to four and we won’t know until he runs this season, but he’s developing nicely, has a nice profile and he’s lightly raced and hopefully he’ll run well which is all I can say really.
“We learnt at Galway that he handles soft ground and this race is invariably run on heavy ground if not soft. He’ll have to handle conditions and he does so.
“We think he’ll step up in trip later on – his brother was quite useful and stayed 1m 6f and I can see him going certainly 1m 2f and possibly even further. But this is a good starting point and he’ll probably step up later.”
When discussing Teed Up this morning, Condon hadn’t had time to digest his weight or to study the opposition in any detail, but he did say: “I suppose the main thing is to see if my rider can ride him – I’m hoping Billy Lee will ride, but we’ll have to see what other options he has and to have a look at the weight.
“We just need to see but this is a race I’ve been thinking about all winter and hopefully he can run well.”
Meanwhile in the early exchanges after Paddy priced the race yesterday, Ado McGuinness’s Casanova has caught the heart of punters and is into 14-1 (from 20).
Paddy Power Irish Lincolnshire
Paddy Power: 7 Teed Up, 8 Dance Jupiter, 10 Maker Of Kings, 11 Layfayette, Roca Roma, 12 Current Option, Music To My Ears, 14 Casanova, Soaring Monarch, 16 Hightimeyouwon, In From The Cold, Lobo Rojo, Mirann, Protagonist, Raise You, 20 Agitare, Big Baby Bull, Breaking Story, Godhead, Laughifuwant, 25 Confide, Gee Rex, Onlyhuman, Takeachancejimmy, Yaforadoe, 33 Comfort Line, Deidra, Fame And Claim, Insignia Of Rank, Party Moon, Quizical, Sasta, Star Of Cashel, Trading Point, Turbine, 40 Fil The Power, Stately Home, 66 Dragon Of Malta, 100 Broad Street, Sheer Bravado, 150 Desert Wind, He Knows No Fear
Each-way 5 places 1/5 odds
