Luck Of The Irish Continues

Lynam trains the globetrotting six-year-old Balmont Mast.

Balmont Mast was placed behind UAE champ Reynaldothewizard in the Group 1 Golden Shaheen, Group 3 Mahab Al Shimal and Meydan Golf Trophy in Dubai last year. He then finished fourth to Lucky Nine in the Group 1 Krisflyer International Sprint in Singapore before going back to Ireland and winning the Listed Testimonial Stakes at The Curragh.

Lynam then produced the three-year-old Not Your Call, also by Balmont, to win the Crown Plaza Stakes at Dundalk on January 10 by 1 3/4 lengths as the 5/4 on favourite. Not Your Call was having his fourth start and appears set for a bright future.

Then Lynam started another Balmont three-year-old, Soft Power, in a similar Crown Plaza Stakes at Dundalk last Friday night. Soft Power, who started favourite at 5/2 on, sat handy on debut, led at the furlong post then sprinted clear to score by six lengths in 1.27.40 on a track described as ‘standard’ – 0.38sec. faster than Maontri recorded later winning the open handicap.

Lynam (52) ran a building company while learning the training ropes under the super-successful Jim Bolger. He set up at County Meath and shot into prominence training Sole Power to beat Aussie star Starspangledbanner in the 2010 Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes in England after starting at 100/1. Sole Power then won last year’s Group 1 King’s Stand Stakes.

Soft Power has a long way to go to emulate the feats of Sole Power but he couldn’t have got off to a better start.