Maybe she is the best

By Alan Conway

The girls take centre stage this weekend when the star two-year-olds of this season line up for the Group 1 Moyglare Stakes at the Curragh on Sunday afternoon. For one filly in particular the opportunity to confirm the high impression she has made thus far awaits her.

Maybe, the Galileo filly, has already proven herself a filly of high class. She took the Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot when she defeated the boys to take the listed contest. She then took the Silver Flash Stakes when she gave three pounds and a beating to La Colina.

That form received a huge boost when La Colina ran next time out. Despite being sent off a 33-1 rank outsider La Colina belied her huge odds when she swooped fast and late to nab the hot favourite Power in the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh.

On the same card Maybe put up the most visually impressive performance of the day when she sprinted away with the Group 2 Debutante Stakes. That day under Joseph O’Brien Maybe travelled all over her rivals and when her jockey asked her to put the race to bed her response could not have been more impressive.

What takes the eye most about Maybe, aside from her impressive physique, is the ease with which she travels through her races. She always appears to be travelling well within herself and the impression is that a strongly run race would help her even more.

She is currently as short as 7-2 favourite for the Qipco 1,000 Guineas and while the Newmarket classic is some way off it just goes to show the impression that she has made this season. While there is always a risk in taking short odds in any race, never mind a Group 1 for two-year-olds, Maybe could still be a little bit of value if she remains odds against come post time.

If there is to be an upset in the Moyglare the two horses that could challenge Maybe are the above mentioned La Colina and the Dermot Weld-trained Yellow Rosebud.

La Colina will be the only Group 1 winner in the race on Sunday having taken the scalp off Power in the Phoenix. Her performance was note worthy as she didn’t have the smoothest passage that day at the Curragh and while some may say Power was idling in front La Colina produced one heck of a turn of foot to catch and overtake Power. Rule her out of calculations at your peril.

The Jeremy filly Yellow Rosebud could be the each way value in the race. Having won on debut from Rigoletta she was upped in class and stayed on fast and late to take second behind Maybe in the Debutante.

While she was never going to catch the winner the penny seemed to have dropped that day with Yellow Rosebud and with normal improvement she is value at her current price of 10-1.

However in my mind Maybe will take some stopping this Sunday. Expect her to land her first Group 1 and yet another for her remarkable sire Galileo en route to further glory before the season’s end.

By Alan Conway