Irish 1000 Guineas: Harrington has the ammo to thwart O’Brien

The omnipotent Aidan O’Brien has saddled two of the last four winners of the Irish 1000 Guineas and dominates the betting once more with 2/1 favourite Found, and Kissed By Angels, third in the betting at 6/1.

However, neither look bullet-proof, with the jolly beaten on heavy ground on her comeback run and her inexperienced Ballydoyle buddy’s best run to date on heavy ground.

This year there’s more than a chance he could be upstaged by a trainer better known for her exploits on the National Hunt scene, with Jessica Harrington’s two entries coming into the race with some sexy form to their names.

Bocca Baciata is clear 5/1 second-favourite thanks to her efforts this season, while 11/1 shot Jack Naylor is impossible to discount on what she produced as a two-year-old.

Having finished just over a length behind Found on her racecourse debut last term, the first mentioned landed the Listed Salsabil Stakes over 1m2f at Navan on her seasonal return, a victory which has been nicely franked by the exploits of the second and third since.

Silver medallist Pleasecach, went out and destroyed a Group 3 field by an eased down eight lengths next time out, while the third Diamondsandrubies went on to beat her rivals by 6l in the Cheshire Oaks.

In the wake of that victory Harrington was reportedly in no doubt that Bocca Baciata, which means ‘lips that have been kissed’ and likely refers to a painting by Dante Gabriel Rosetti, should be stepped back down in trip and aimed at this race.

Yet stablemate Jack Naylor is arguably the more intriguing runner of the pair at the bigger price, having finished third behind Found in the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac at Longchamp at the back end of 2014.

That race came at the end of a busy two-year-old campaign that had seen her comfortably best subsequent English 1000 Guineas winner Legatissimo at the Curragh on her previous outing.

The superb Richard Hughes is in the plate and were it not for the fact that she had missed her intended prep run due to heavy ground she would likely be shorter in the market.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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