Racing News

Epsom Oaks heroine Thundering On is the star attraction on the second day of the Dubai Duty Free Derby Festival at the Curragh on Saturday when she will face nine rivals in the €400,000 Paddy Power Pretty Polly Stakes at 3.55pm. Her dam Thundering Nights carried the same Shapoor Mistry silks when she provided trainer Joseph O’Brien with his second Pretty Polly win in 2021 and she will be joined by stable companions’ Nyra, runner-up in the Munster Oaks, and Wemightakedlongway, a Group 3 winner last season.

The three-day Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby festival gets underway at the Curragh on Friday with an eight-race card starting at 4.33pm where a field of 20 will face the starter for the Fitzpatrick’s Mercedes-Benz Apprentice Derby at 6.45pm.

GAIN Equine Nutrition’s long-standing support of The Curragh Racecourse continues to shape the pathway for Ireland’s next generation of two-year-old talent, with the 2026 season building on a partnership in place since 2012. This year’s sponsorship was officially launched at the racing yard of leading trainer Jessica Harrington, a valued customer of GAIN Equine Nutrition, highlighting the brand’s close connection with those at the heart of Irish racing. The 2026 sponsorship features two key juvenile contests at The Curragh.

Three Days of World Class Racing, Style, Culture and Unmissable Experiences The Curragh Racecourse will once again take centre stage this summer as it hosts the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby Festival, running from Friday 26th to Sunday 28th June 2026. As the jewel in Ireland’s Flat racing crown, the festival promises three extraordinary days that blend elite sport, contemporary Irish culture, exceptional hospitality, and a vibrant social scene, all set against the backdrop of one of the world’s most historic and revered racecourses.

Epic battle in store for Sunday's Tattersalls Irish 1,000 Guineas. Another showdown between two high class fillies is on the menu for the second day of Tattersalls Guineas Weekend at the Curragh this Sunday after Aidan O’Brien’s English 1,000 Guineas heroine True Love and stable companion Precise both figured among the 12 declared for the Tattersalls Irish 1,000 Guineas on Friday morning. True Love supplied the Ballydoyle trainer, who has also declared Beautify, with his 49th British Classic success when victorious at Newmarket where a below par Precise was only seventh after starting favourite under Ryan Moore.

Billy Loughnane also bids for his first Irish Classic. Gstaad heads the ten runners declared for Saturday’s Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas with the Newmarket Guineas runner-up a warm favourite to provide Aidan O’Brien with his 13th win in the first Irish classic of the season. His stable companion Neolithic is also declared for the Group 1 contest at 3.40pm that includes three overseas challengers including Alparslan (Karl Burke), who landed the valuable Tattersalls Sales race on his previous visit to the Curragh last September.