Chicago Pope
Chicago Pope is a three-year-old building a pattern of wins at the track where he first broke through. Since his debut victory at Naas on 12 October 2025, he has won twice from ten races — a 20 per cent win rate — and finished in the top 3 a further four times, marking him as a horse who runs well consistently without winning every time out. The real story, though, is what happens when he returns to Naas: he has won 2 of his 3 races there, a remarkable two-thirds success rate that suggests the track suits him perfectly.Based on TrackLab's analysis
Owner
Anthony Paul Smurfit Samuel M Mencoff
📊 Key numbers
Career totals for this horse
🔍 Full analysis
Our model's view, based on this horse's career and recent runs
His recent form paints a picture of a horse in good order. He won just five months ago at Naas on 9 May 2026 and has taken 2 of his last 6 races, most recently running fourth just a day ago. That fourth-place finish came after a pair of back-to-back wins earlier in this run, so while the form is mixed, the wins are there. The partnership with jockey Ben Coen has been especially productive — the two have combined for 2 wins from 5 races together, a 40 per cent win rate that is well above the horse's overall average, suggesting they work well as a team.
Trained by J. P. Murtagh at Coolaghknock Glebe in County Kildare, Chicago Pope runs for a yard in excellent form: Murtagh has sent out 53 winners already this season. At three years old, Chicago Pope remains lightly raced with room to develop, and the evidence from Naas suggests there is genuine ability here — when the track and conditions align, he delivers.
⚡ Strengths and risks
What helps this horse and what to watch out for
✓ What works in their favour
✔ Excellent record on yielding ground: 1 wins from 3 starts (33%)
✔ Effective partnership with Ben Coen: 40% win rate together
⚠ What to watch out for
⚠ Yet to win at The Curragh in 5 attempts
⚠ Struggles on RH Galloping tracks: 0 wins from 6 starts
🎯 Where this horse runs best
Results split by ground, distance, race level and track shape
🌧 Ground
Yielding (slightly soft)
Loves
Good (a little give)
Likes
Yielding to soft (damp)
Unknown
🏟 Track shape
Left-handed, long straights
Loves
Right-handed, long straights
Avoids
📅 Recent runs
The last 10 races, most recent first
15 Oct
12th
The Curragh
5f – 6½f · Soft · 13 runners
13 Sep
16th
The Curragh
5f – 6½f · Yielding · 26 runners
13 Jun
4th
York
5f – 6½f · Good · 22 runners
9 May
🏆 Won
Naas
5f – 6½f · Good · 15 runners
4 Apr
2nd
Cork
5f – 6½f · Soft · 8 runners
12 Oct
🏆 Won
Naas
5f – 6½f · Yielding · 6 runners
27 Sep
19th
The Curragh
7f – 1m · Yielding_To_Soft · 33 runners
23 Aug
5th
The Curragh
7f – 1m · Good · 5 runners
9 Aug
2nd
The Curragh
5f – 6½f · Good · 30 runners
23 Jul
7th
Naas
5f – 6½f · Yielding · 17 runners
🏇 Jockeys
Every jockey who has ridden this horse, most rides first
🏟 Course record
Win rate at each course this horse has visited
| Course | Races | Results | Last run | Win rate |
|---|
| The Curragh Galloping |
5 |
1 second, 4 other |
15 Oct |
0% |
| Naas Galloping |
3 |
2 wins, 1 other |
9 May |
66.7% |
| York Galloping |
1 |
1 other |
13 Jun |
0% |
| Cork Galloping |
1 |
1 second |
4 Apr |
0% |