Lough Nigara

The good news is that Lough Nigara has found some form recently. He won at Thurles just three weeks ago and picked up another victory in his last six runs, giving him 2 wins from those 6 races—a sudden spike to a 33% win rate that suggests he may be running better now than at any other point in his career. His regular partner is jockey Ricky Doyle, and while Doyle has only converted 2 of their 15 rides together into wins, they seem to have found a rhythm; both victories came with Doyle in the saddle, including that recent success at Thurles.

The key to unlocking Lough Nigara appears to be the weather. On very wet ground, he becomes an entirely different proposition: he has won 2 of his 5 races in those conditions, a 40% win rate that towers over his overall record. That first career win came at Punchestown on muddy January going, and the Thurles victory came on wet ground too. Trainer Eoin Griffin, based in Co Kilkenny, has got nine-year-old dialled in for the conditions that suit him best, and with the yard having sent out eight winners already this season, there is clearly a sharpness there. On soft or heavy ground at the right track, Lough Nigara is genuinely worth watching.