Fascinating Saturday Set to Unfold at The Curragh

It's easily one of the biggest weekend's of the year in Irish flat racing as a pair of influential Group 1 contests unfold at the Curragh. Saturday's card is anchored by the latest iteration of the Pretty Polly Stakes – a 1m2f race for older fillies and mares while Sunday features the fascinating prospect of the Queen sending the pride of her barn to Irish shores looking for a high-profile scalp.

A pair of Group 3 contests bookend the Pretty Polly on Saturday with the Grangecon Stud Stakes for fillies followed by the At The Races Gold Cup.

The Pretty Polly is a key destination on the Irish racing calendar for females and the Juddmonte-bred Midday (Oasis Dream) has seen punters piling on in the past seven days as they have beat her price down to an odds-on listing at virtually all bookmakers. She opened her account this year with a Group 2 at York in the Middleton Stakes before being beaten a length by the talented St Nicholas Abbey (Galileo) when she faced males in the Group 1 Coronation Cup.

She really offered no extra at the crucial point in that last race and the cut back in distance from 1m4f to 1m2f will definitely suit her as she tends to only hit those longer distances later in her campaigns. We saw that in the Group 1 Qatar Prix Vermeille at Longchamp last September when she scored at the full mile and a half. Punters will note that she has only finished outside of the top 3 twice in her eighteen race career – a fact made even more impressive when you consider that she has regularly shipped to North America. She made the trek last year for the Breeders' Cup and also to Santa Anita back in 2009.

A few interesting shippers invade for this one with mysterious Italian four-year-old Aoife Alainn being floated at 33/1. Globetrotting Snow Fairy (Intikhab) returns to defend her 1/1 record at the Curragh after capturing the Darley Irish Oaks last year during her improbable three-year-old run. This contest will be her seasonal debut and the 10/3 price is likely that high because some might be wondering whether she can run as fresh as she did in her first race last year after enduring such a lengthy campaign.

The interestingly-named Obama Rule (Danehill Dancer) trades at 50/1 while Aiden O'Brien saddles the 6/1 shot Misty For Me (Galileo). There may be a bit of a system play in effect with her because of the sheer number of Galileos winning prominent Group 1 contests this season – it truly looks to be a breakout year for the son of Sadler's Wells.