Baraweez, near side© Photo Healy Racing
Brian Ellison is keeping his fingers crossed Baraweez can roll back the clock and claim a third victory at Galway in today's COLM QUINN BMW Mile.
The gelded son of Cape Cross has run 10 times at Ballybrit, with his two course wins supplemented by three placed efforts.
It is five years since he claimed his first “Ahonoora” Handicap, a victory he repeated 12 months later.
Now in the veteran stage of his career at the age of nine, Baraweez has not yet rediscovered his best form so far this year, but that has coincided with a drop in the weights ahead of his return to Ireland.
“He seems well enough and we’re hoping he’ll run well,” said Ellison.
“He’s been running fine and he’s much better handicapped this year than he was last year.
“He’s been going there (Galway) for a long time, so we’ll see.”
Baraweez features in a final field of 18 runners for the 120,000 euros feature, with the Willie Mullins-trained Riven Light — winner of this prize for the last two years — a notable absentee.
There is a second British raider in the form of Mark Johnston’s Rufus King while the home team includes Aidan O’Brien’s Turnberry Isle Dermot Weld’s Jassaar and Sheila Lavery’s hat-trick seeker Magnetic North
The latter followed up a June win at Navan with a lucrative triumph in the “Nasrullah” Handicap at Leopardstown almost three weeks ago.
Lavery, who also saddles Quizical said: “Any rain they get will be good for both of my horses.
“Magnetic North is in good form. Coming back to a mile from a mile and a quarter would be a slight concern, but it’s a stiff mile and as I say, any rain they get would be helpful — just to make it a bit more of a test. He has plenty of speed and hopefully he’ll be fine.
“Magnetic North will handle the ground as it is, but Quizical would definitely prefer it softer. I know I’ve run him a couple of times this year, but I’ve run him on the wrong ground. We’ve been waiting for the rain to come, but we’ll give it a lash and see what happens.”
