Preview of the best bets for Friday Night Racing at Galway It’s Friday Night Racing at Galway Races and a bumper crowd is expected for an ultra-competitive fifth day of action at the week-long festival. Despite the expected quick ground conditions there are maximum fields, including reserves, for five of the eight races and a number of horses are set to have their second outings of the week. Leading bookmaker BoyleSports are offering new customers a sign up bonus of up to €60 when they open an online account this week and deposit €10. BoyleSports are also refunding all mobile and in store customers' stakes as a free bet when their horse finishes second to the SP favourite in any race at Galway. The free bet money back offer relates to the first €10 staked on the race. 18+ T&Cs Apply Dunlewey.org Nibiru, representing the powerful Galway combination of Tony Martin and owner John Breslin, will take all the beating in the opening Guinness Galway Tribes handicap hurdle at 5.00pm. The seven-year-old hasn’t raced over jumps since October of last year but showed his well being with a victory on the flat at Fairyhouse earlier this month. Several of his chief rivals, including course winners Jiving Jerry and Teed Up, would be better suited by soft ground and unless the heavens open they are unlikely to get their preferred surface. Martin and Breslin are also represented by Unanswered in the concluding 1m6f handicap at 8.40pm. Unanswered is having his second run in the space of 48 hours having narrowly failed to justify favouritism on Wednesday evening, storming up the straight to be beaten a fast diminishing neck. Billy Lee is again in the plate and will be hoping to get Unanswered into top gear quite a bit sooner this time as the race is more than two furlongs shorter in distance than Wednesday’s contest. The Shunter, which finished eighth in Wednesday’s Galway Plate, is also set to reappear this evening when he tries his luck on the Flat in the Rockshore Irish Lager Race at 8.10pm. The nine-year-old was a ready winner of his only previous Flat start at Sligo in May but this looks a pretty hot contest with a number of quality stayers in opposition. Shoshone Warrior was a revelation on his comeback run at Leopardstown recently and if adopting similar forcing tactics will be difficult to peg back. Joseph O’Brien, who trains Shoshone Warrior, has leading claims in the Guinness Handicap at 6.35pm when he saddles previous Galway Festival winner Merrior. This mare comes here off the back of a winning seasonal reappearance at Ballinrobe last month and her course form at Galway marks her down as a likely contender in this tough handicap despite her unfavourable draw in stall 20. Willie Mullins has won this Guinness Handicap four times in the last seven years and his representative Baby Zeus is of obvious interest. The five-year-old finished fourth in this contest last year and has drawn stall 2 for the second year in a row which is certainly a plus. Baby Zeus’ form profile suggests he is best when fresh so coming here off a 77 day break is positive. Mullins is also likely to have a say in the outcome of the Guinness Fillies Maiden at 7.10pm where he has Colin Keane booked to partner Raving Royal. This daughter of Kingman showed she possesses ability when running third on debut in a decent contest at Navan. She subsequently flopped on soft ground at Bellewstown but it will be no surprise if she gets back on track here with the Champion Jockey booked and a plum berth in stall 1. Rockbury Lad had no luck in running over the course on Monday evening when fourth to Dairerin. He has an extra furlong to cover in the Arthur Guinness Handicap at 7.40pm this evening and while he has yet to race over that far he did finish out his race strongly on Monday when he finally got into the clear.
