IT has become increasingly obvious that the vast majority of the Irish racing public feel the decision to race on at the Curragh was wrong. And, it is become increasingly noticeable that those who defended that decision this weekend, were mostly all hands-on industry professionals, and nearly all had the common denominator of a connection to Coolmore.

There is plenty of substance to their argument. Most accept that the Curragh is the best track in Ireland, that the best horse nearly always wins and that good trainers from Britain and France send good horses because of this. That adds big value to the race.

However it is also worth pointing out that for the trainer, the jockey and the owner, the ongoing redevelopment work won’t have impacted their usual Curragh experience to a degree. The parade ring and pre-race facilities are mostly as they were, and obviously the track is the track.

It is particularly galling that those in favour of racing on at the Curragh do not make reference to the main issue here - that just over 5,000 people attended what is supposed to be the biggest day of the Irish racing calendar. Many would-be racegoers were told not to show up only to find out that the capacity of 6,000 was not nearly breached.

Flat racing comes a distant second to National Hunt racing for the majority of observers in this country and surely this sort of experience will not help. Everyone is looking forward to the new-and-improved Curragh and though it is always darkest in the hours just before dawn surely this could have been avoided and better yet, provided a huge opportunity to promote Irish flat racing in the capital.

Leopardstown is a top class track and not only would it have safely catered for everyone who wanted to attend the Irish Derby meeting, but it could well have brought in plenty of new racegoers. Here lies the opportunity lost.

Some would argue that Irish Derby Day actually comes second to the ever more popular Irish Champion Stakes Day, the first part of Irish Champions Weekend. The Irish Champion Stakes was arguably the best race run in Europe last year with the brilliant Almanzor leading home Found and Minding, with all three winning at the top level before and after.

The suggestion is that if the the sport's top connections showed up at Leopardstown for that race, they would have no problem doing the same for the Irish Derby.

Irish Champion Stakes Day at Leopardstown has brought in big crowds in recent years

Leopardstown do an excellent job marketing their big days. A total of 14,550 attended Irish Champion Stakes Day last year while the next day at the Curragh, for the second part of the Irish Champions Weekend, only 9,255 showed up.

The Irish Derby should have been given to Leopardstown - where it could have been marketed as a unique event, which surely would have brought in a decent crowd for the two years and then the race would have returned back to the brand new Curragh, with plenty of new racegoers to go along with it. A completely fresh start.

Too late now you say, but we may get some sort of insight into what could have been should racing officials listen to the calls of Noel Meade, to give the second half of Irish Champions Weekend to Leopardstown.

It would be welcomed by many in the industry. Particularly in the case of the Irish St Leger, which was a four-runner contest last year, and is a race that badly needs a kickstart.

WINGS NOT FORGOTTEN

TO the racing action and with all of the above said, the Irish Derby itself might have done with a more interesting result. A win for either of the top three in the betting, each hailing from a different racing district would have provided that but a win for Capri, Ballydoyle second string, left the journalists on hand scrambling to make an interesting read for the Sunday papers.

Capri battled well to win the Irish Derby, giving his trainer Aidan O'Brien a 12th win in the race

Capri was gutsy and fought off his challengers in good style but that there was less than two lengths between the top four is evidence that this three-year-old crop is not of the vintage kind. We can’t make that sort of speculation with much conviction until the upcoming all-age Group 1 races take place.

If you were looking for the most interesting angle on the Irish Derby - it was probably through Wings Of Eagles, who we learned had to be retired for an injury sustained through the race. That the son of Pour Moi was still able to run third says a lot for his courage and bravery. And while he may well become the forgotten horse, his Derby win will last long in my memory.

A 40/1 shot at Epsom, he came from the other side of London to earn his place in history. His rider on the day, Padraig Beggy, was a brilliant assistant, and though a similar fate may be in store for the 31-year-old, his place in the history books is ensured as well.

WELD FORM

THREE Kingdoms, a 33/1 shot, provided Dermot Weld with a much needed winner in the last race on Saturday’s Curragh card. Weld’s stable hasn’t been in top form this year, especially compared to the usual standard you’d expect from the master trainer. This time last season, Weld had 43 winners. Now, he only has 19.

Perhaps it is stable form or perhaps it is down to a particularly low level crop of three-year-olds - Weld has only had eight three-year-old wins this term.

Some of his horses ran well at the weekend. Zhukova’s fourth in the Pretty Polly Stakes was a perfectly plausible result but some also ran poorly, like Forgotten Rules tailing off in the Curragh Cup and recent winner Zabalan finishing second last when favourite in the closing 10-furlong handicap yesterday.

With the Galway Festival around the corner, Weld will be desperate to catch some form before heading to Ballybrit.