Jon Riggens

Jon Riggens did well to get as close as he did in the five-furlong premier handicap at Cork last Friday evening.  Held up early on  towards the far side, as is his wont, he was still last of the 14 runners as they raced inside the two-furlong marker.  He picked up well though towards the far side for James Ryan, he made his way among horses and he finished off his race well.  He got past Dun Na Sead into third place, and he failed by just a head and a neck to get to Gabriella’s Spirit and Little Queenie.

This was a race in which it was difficult to make ground from the rear.  The first four had a little break on the rest of the field at the winning line, and the other three horses who, with Jon Riggens, filled those places, all raced handily.  Eddie Lynam’s horse is in the form of his life at present, and a big pot may not be far away.  Three of his last four runs – the exception being his performance in the Rockingham at The Curragh last month, when he effectively and uncharacteristically refused to race – are up there with the best of his career.  He will always be a hostage to fortune, given his hold-up style of racing, but he is a highly-talented sprint handicapper.  He is at his best over five furlongs on soft or heavy ground, so interest in him will be heightened when the ground softens further as we move into the autumn.
Cork, 28^th July 2023