Tim Carroll 's Bio

Tim started off as a jockey in Australia before pursuing a media career. He is a highly experienced and respected racing presenter who has been based in England since 2005. Tim has travelled the world covering many of the major meetings, including Royal Ascot, The Epsom Derby, The International meeting from Sha Tin, The Dubai World Cup, The Everest, The Saudi Cup and The Breeders. He is currently a presenter for Sky Sports Racing, specialising in both the local and international scene. Tim is a regular contributor to the At The Races Website where his twice weekly tipping column on Hong Kong racing has gathered a strong following.

Curragh Racecourse – Track Analysis (Tattersalls Gold Cup & Irish 1000 Guineas)

Curragh racecourse, which is commonly referred to as ‘The Curragh’ - simply ‘The Place of the Running Horse’ in Gaelic - is a horseshoe shaped, right-handed course. With no sharp bends, it is generally a galloping track that nonetheless features a number of undulations throughout, in particular the 600m homestretch that races slightly uphill all the way. There are several starting points on the horseshoe courses up to 3200m, whilst the straight course, which has a chute on the bottom right hand side of the track that joins the main straight, has starting points from 1000m to 1600m.

For the G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup over 2100m, they start on the far side, or the very top of the track, from a chute that juts out on the Plate course. They have a nice straight run before a long sweeping bend that heads downhill before meeting the main straight. Like most races on the round course, there is no barrier bias, and horses can win from anywhere, but the uphill rise does tend to catch them out if they are ridden too aggressively.

For the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas over 1600m, it starts from the 1600m chute. Often referred to as a straight mile, it is nevertheless a misnomer, as a massive, gradual, right-handed dog-leg presents itself some 300m after the break, eventually funneling the field back into the straight. Thus, it is tantamount for both stalkers and deep closers to fetch cover early, especially in bigger fields, as it is almost impossible to cut the breeze and win it every step of the way, especially on days when fields are racing into a strong head-wind.

Last year’s Irish 1000 Guineas was run on Good going with a field of 10 going to post. On leaving the stalls MEDITATE led with DOWER HOUSE and YOU SEND ME both prominent whilst TAHIYRA, was hard up against the rail, one of several that tracked the speed. 600m from home DOWER HOUSE had taken over but was being pushed along with both MEDITATE and TAHIYRA seemingly travelling well, as was TARAWA who was looking for an opening toward the back. 400m from home MEDITATE struck the front, but TAHIYRA peeled off her back to lay down the gauntlet and this pair settled down to fight it out with TAHIYRA going on to win by 1.5 lengths from MEDITATE with the rank outsider, COMHRA grabbing the bronze just in front of the slightly unlucky TARAWA in a time that was 3.29 seconds slower than standard.

The weather forecast suggests there is a strong chance of rain during the week in the leadup and a slight possibility of rain on race day, with Good to Yielding or Soft a strong possibility.

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