Fairyhouse, Thursday 28 May 2026: Tips and Selections

Fairyhouse, Thursday 28 May 2026: Tips and Selections

Good ground at Fairyhouse today under partly cloudy skies, a seven-race card with a nice spread of 2yo action and handicap fare to pick through. The Epsom Derby is just over a week away if you’re already thinking ahead, but there’s plenty of value to chase right here at Fairyhouse. Three races catch the eye and we’ve got strong angles in each. Let’s get into it.

2:12 — Irish EBF Median Sires Series (6f, 2yo, Good)

Selection: Citrus Springs (J M Sheridan, Joseph Patrick O’Brien) — 3/1 LiveScore Bet

The headline angle here is simple: this is a Joseph O’Brien yard debutante who cost 300,000USD at the breeze-ups. That kind of purchase price at the breeze-ups screams speed, and speed is exactly what you need over six furlongs on good ground. She’s a half-sister to US winners and the dam’s side stretches back to Grade 1 US turf form. O’Brien holds a Group entry for her next month, which tells you the stable already holds her in some regard.

Joseph O’Brien’s 14-day stats at 4/60 look lean on the surface, but his Fairyhouse record sits at a respectable 15% strike rate. Sheridan gets the leg-up on a filly the market is already warming to at 3/1. That price could shorten further on the day given the breeze-up pedigree and the Group entry context.

Lars Soldier looked wrong on quick ground in the Marble Hill last Sunday, racing keenly and getting beaten over six lengths. He’s likely to need better conditions to show his best. Joga Bonito at 2/1 is the danger, dropping back from 7.5f having shown speed at Roscommon, but P Twomey is 1/14 in the last 14 days, which is not a yard firing at full tilt right now. Citrus Springs is the one.

• Citrus Springs — 3/1 (LiveScore Bet), 10/3 (Boyle Sports/Betfred)
• Each-way: 3 places, 1/5 odds

3:17 — Fiver Fridays Handicap (6f, 3yo fillies, Good)

Selection: Stone Bear Each-Way (Siobhan Rutledge, Ross O’Sullivan) — 11/2 Boyle Sports

Ten runners over six furlongs in a 3yo fillies handicap and the one I keep coming back to is Stone Bear. Both her wins have come on the all-weather over this sort of trip, and crucially she stepped back onto turf at Naas on her latest run and ran a cracking race, finishing a length third of sixteen from off the pace over five furlongs on good ground. The step back up to six furlongs looks a significant positive, giving her more time to land her stride.

She’s off the same mark and looks progressive. Ross O’Sullivan’s stable sits at just 1/22 in the last 14 days, which you can’t ignore, but the form angle and the going angle both point to her running a big race here.

The market has Baiana at 5/2 favourite on handicap debut, but she’s won on yielding-to-soft and soft ground only, and this is good ground today. That’s the question mark hanging over her and the reason the each-way play on Stone Bear at 11/2 appeals. Treasured Royal is consistent and gets Gavin Carroll aboard, but she’s only 1lb lower than when she last ran well and is probably short enough at 7/2 to offer real value. Gonna Be Golden is one to note at 16/1 for the improving A Oliver yard if the step down to six on quicker ground sparks a revival.

• Stone Bear — 11/2 Boyle Sports and Betfred
• Each-way: 3 places at 1/5 odds

5:27 — Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Maiden (1m2f, 3yo fillies, Good)

Selection: Mai Dahlia (J M Sheridan, Joseph Patrick O’Brien) — 6/4 all books

This is the race of the day for me and Mai Dahlia looks a filly who has been slightly underestimated. Her Naas debut eleven days ago told you a lot: she came from off the pace without a clear run and still finished within a head and a neck of the winner. She was beaten by traffic, not by ability, and that’s a crucial distinction.

The step up to a mile and two furlongs looks tailor-made. She’s by Too Darn Hot, a sire who consistently upgrades at a mile-plus, and her half-siblings have won at ten furlongs and beyond. The dam’s side includes a UAE Group 1 winner over a mile and two. This is a filly bred for exactly this trip on exactly this ground.

Guardian Of Realm was too keen at Naas last time and has questions to answer in terms of settling over the extra trip. Mathoura ran well on debut at Gowran and will be a factor, but she’s already proven she needs further experience against potentially sharp debutantes. Mandara Mist is the wildcard from the Twomey yard but 10/3 on debut is asking plenty when the yard’s 14-day form is 1/14.

Sheridan and Joseph O’Brien again. The trainer’s 15% course record at Fairyhouse is solid enough, and the filly’s Naas run sets a higher floor than this market is pricing in. 6/4 is workable for a horse that almost certainly should have won last time.

• Mai Dahlia — 6/4 Boyle Sports, Betfred, LiveScore Bet

Today’s NAP

Mai Dahlia — Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Maiden (5:27, Fairyhouse)
Odds: 6/4 — Boyle Sports (others: 6/4 Betfred, 6/4 LiveScore Bet)

A filly who was unlucky not to win on debut at Naas, finishing a head and a neck behind the winner having never had daylight through the final two furlongs. She’s bred for a mile and a quarter, by Too Darn Hot out of a dam with UAE Group 1 pedigree, and today’s step up in trip looks like the move that unlocks her full potential. Good ground suits, the form line reads better than the result, and at 6/4 she represents genuine value in a weak enough maiden where no rival holds a convincing edge over her once she gets the clear run she was denied last time.