The Australian sprint mare Asfoora has already had a successful second journey to Europe this summer, winning the Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes at York Racecourse last month. In 2024, Asfoora won the Group 1 King Charles III Stakes at five furlongs at Royal Ascot, the highlight of a four-race British campaign. This year’s campaign could be more productive if Asfoora has a successful first trip to Ireland for Sunday’s Group 1 Flying Five Stakes at five furlongs at the Curragh. A win will not be easy even though Asfoora was the 3-1 favorite in early betting on Friday. The $468,800 Flying Five Stakes drew a field of 16. The race is run on a straightaway course, often at a hectic pace. Jockey Dylan McMonagle will ride Asfoora for the first time, replacing Oisin Murphy, who is riding in France on Sunday. :: Access the most trusted data and information in horse racing! DRF Past Performances and Picks are available now. A winner of 10 of 26 starts, Asfoora was seventh by 2 1/4 lengths in the Group 2 King George Stakes at five furlongs at Goodwood Racecourse in Britain on Aug. 1, and rebounded to win the Nunthorpe Stakes by 1 1/4 lengths against 16 rivals at five furlongs on a straight course at York on Aug. 22. Asfoora drew post 1 in the Flying Five, adjacent to Bucanero Fuerto, the 5-1 second choice in early betting. Bucanero Fuerto was seventh in the 2024 Flying Five Stakes, but is unbeaten in two sprint stakes this year, the most recent of which was the Group 3 Phoenix Sprint Stakes at six furlongs at the Curragh on Aug. 9. The winner of the Flying Five receives a fees-paid berth to the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at five furlongs at Del Mar on Nov. 1. The Flying Five Stakes is one of four Group 1 races at the Curragh on Sunday. A berth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf is available to the winner of the $468,800 Moyglare Stud Stakes for 2-year-old fillies at seven furlongs. The Moyglare Stud Stakes drew a field of seven led by Venetian Sun and Composing. Venetian Sun is unbeaten in four starts, the latest being the Group 1 Prix Morny against males at six furlongs at Deauville, France, on Aug. 24. Based in Britain with trainer Karl Burke, the Moyglare Stud Stakes will be Venetian Sun’s first start in Ireland. Composing, trained in Ireland by Aidan O’Brien, has won her last three starts, including a key prep race for the Moyglare Stud Stakes in the Group 2 Debutante Stakes at six furlongs by 2 1/2 lengths at the Curragh on Aug. 23. The O’Brien-trained Gstaad, second by a short neck to Venetian Sun in the Group 1 Prix Morny, will be favored to win the $468,800 National Stakes for 2-year-old colts and fillies at seven furlongs. Gstaad has five rivals, a list that includes the unbeaten Saba Desert, a two-time winner at seven furlongs in Britain for trainer Charlie Appleby. Saba Desert won the Group 2 Superlative Stakes at Newmarket on July 12 in his last start. The longest race, and richest race, of the day is the $586,000, 1 3/4-mile Irish St. Leger Stakes, which drew a field of nine and may serve as a prep race for the Melbourne Cup in Australia on Nov. 4. Al Riffa, a five-length winner of the Group 2 Curragh Cup at 1 3/4 miles on July 19 for trainer Joseph O’Brien, may be a slight favorite over his father Aidan’s starter Illinois, who has been second or third in five Group 1 races in his career but has yet to win at the highest level. In his last two starts, both in Group 1 races, Illinios was second in the Ascot Gold Cup at 2 1/2 miles on June 19 and second in the two-mile Goodwood Cup on July 29. As of Friday, Al Riffa was the 12-1 second choice with some bookmakers for the Melbourne Cup. :: Want to learn more about handicapping and wagering? Check out DRF's Handicapping 101 and Wagering 101 pages.