Currawood continues on upward curve at Cork

Currawood booked a potential trip to the Curragh for the Tetrarch Stakes following a convincing victory in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Median Auction Race at Cork.

Having chased home the likes of Derby favourite The Lion In Winter and Killavullen runner-up Antelope Canyon in maidens last season, Paddy Twomey wasted no time in getting him off the mark this year by sending him to Dundalk.

With his confidence boosted by an easy success on the all-weather, he faced a decent rival in Rowdy Yeats, with Noel Meade’s charge rated 94.

However, fitted with first-time cheekpieces, 9-4 second favourite Currawood looked in a different league, coming home five and a half lengths clear – making his Irish Guineas entry look less fanciful by the race.

“I was hoping he would come and do something like that. I hadn’t factored in soft ground but it is what it is, and this race was in the programme for him,” Twomey said.

“He had the form in the book, his two-year-old form is good and I think he has matured a lot from two to three. He was just ready to start when he won in Dundalk and he has trained well since then.

“He has run five times now, has won his last two starts and is a solid horse. He takes racing well and we might look at the Tetrarch Stakes in a couple of weeks next.”