2011 Irish Champion Stakes - The Locks

On Saturday, at Leopardstown, Ireland that is, we have 2 Group 1 races, including the Irish Champion Stakes.  Leopardstown is not named "Leopard's town" as if there were big game cats running around the Irish countryside....Ireland has some rabbits and foxes but the wildlife doesn't include  leopards nor lions or tigers or jaguars, to speak of.  But Leopardstown comes from the Irish, Baile na Lobhar, meaning "Town of the Lepers".   I'd say its a bit an uninviting name. So possibly that is why the Leopardstown chamber of commerce built the racecourse in the 1880s....possibly to attract the non-lepers down the coast from Dublin.   Now...begs the question as to when the non-lepers came to Leopardstown....did they get treated lie 'lepers"??


In all my travels, I've been treated very well.....although there is one place that I've been treated like a "leper" not so subtly which I will expand on at a later date...for now I will stick to racing...


As to the races.....the Matron Stakes is a race for fillies and mares going a flat mile and it features 11/8 favorite, Misty for Me, who has already won 4 Group 1 races including winning the Irish 1,000 Guineas at the Curragh.  I actually will look for Lolly for Dolly, 9-1 to provide some value.  LforD has raced either first or 2nd in every race in 2011 except for its last race where a new jock was riding the filly.  WM Lordan is back in saddle and the horse should be back to winning ways.  Emulous at 4-1 also provides alot of value for a horse that has only been once out of the money in 9 tries and that race was the filly was returning from lay-off...has won last 2 since including beating LforD.   11/2 Together can't be overlooked because both of her wins came at Leopardstown and has 2 place finishes in the English and Irish1,000 Guineas.


For the Locks, lets go 


$10 Win on LforD
$ 1 exacta all over LforD


$4 WP Emulous


$2 exacta Emulous, LforD, Together


In the Irish Champion Stakes we have a short field of 6 with a heavy 1/3 favorite in So You Think.  So You Think is beatable just as I thought at Ascot where the Australian import was beat at 4/11 odds - problem was I was backing Planteur while Rewilding won.  In this race I will need to make the stand against the chalk.  Take into fact also no horse other than an Irish trained horse has won this race since 2002.  I am going to look no further than Famous Name at 12 -1.  In 2011, 4 wins, 6 in the $ finishes in 6 starts...Also the 6yo loves Leopardstown in 12 tries on the course, the horse has won 9 times!!


The Locks are:
$10 win FN
$1 exacta FN over all


Not a lot of permutations here actually will only cash ticket if FN wins...thats why they call it gambling!!


Epilogue
Emulous wins the Matron Stakes impressively.  Together is 2nd. 
Bets $37 Win $24.40 + $9.20 + $60.80 Net +$57.40


Favorite wins a close one but Famous Name 3rd.
Bet $15 Win $0 Net -$15






Good Luck!!