Medicine Jack
Medicine Jack battled on well to win the 6f handicap. Ger Lyons' horse was a little keen through the very early stages of the race, but he settled into a nice rhythm then in the front rank for Colin Keane. He travelled well to the 2f pole and he battled back well after he had been headed by Gymkhana to get back up and win by a head from Smash Williams, who also kept on well.
Medicine Jack won the Group 2 Railway Stakes as a juvenile two years ago and, third in the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes, he was rated 108 at his peak. Raced just once last year as a three-year-old, he has been gelded since, and he was racing off a mark of 94 on Sunday. A 4lb hike takes him up to a mark of just 98, 10lb lower than his peak, and that gives him plenty of potential leeway. He would be interesting now in a big 6f handicap off that mark, but he could also make his mark in Pattern company.
Naas, 25th March 2018s stamina beyond its limit. He jumped a little to his left here too, as he had done before, so, even though a lot of his big runs have been at right-handed tracks - two of his three wins over fences have been at right-handed tracks - he might do even better at a left-handed track. He could be a horse for a big staying handicap chase at a left-handed track next season, possibly the Paddy Power Chase, and he could be an Aintree National horse at some point in the future.
Fairyhouse, 2nd April 2018
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