Irish Bliss’ return to racing at Newcastle was executed to perfection with the son of Westbury Stud’s Redwood opening his campaign in grand fashion.
Trainer Nathan Doyle had been bullish about the four-year-old’s prospects over Saturday’s 1300 metres on his home track and his expectations were met in style.
He hadn’t raced since July, but Doyle was in a confident frame of mind following two lead-up trials with a comfortable victory in the most recent of them at Newcastle last month.
“He was very sharp and the 1300 metres was spot on for him,” he said.
Bred and part-owned by Gerry Harvey, Irish Bliss broke quickly from the gates to make the running under Lee Magorrian and was travelling comfortably on the home bend.
With a minimum of persuasion, the gelding lengthened stride and coasted to the line under his topweight of 59kg to score with authority.
“He’s got a high cruising speed and I thought he would take some catching,” Doyle said.
His ultra-consistent representative has now won on two occasions and posted a further five placings from his eight appearances.
Irish Bliss failed to meet his $45,000 reserve when originally offered by Westbury at New Zealand Bloodstock’s Ready to Run Sale and is a son of the unraced Encosta De Lago mare Ballyalla.
The dam has done an excellent job at stud with six of her foals to race successful, including El Roca’s multiple winning daughter Norwegian Bliss who also finished runner-up in the G3 Kevin Heffernan Stakes.
Ballyalla is out of a half-sister to the Group 1-winning half-siblings Shogun Lodge, Singing The Blues and Referral.
She has an unraced two-year-old brother to Irish Bliss and produced a half-sister by El Roca last season before a return visit to Westbury’s stakes winning son of Fastnet Rock.
