Horse racing tips – Galway Festival 2026 Day 5
Horse racing tips – Galway Festival 2026 Day 5
Harry ReynoldsFri, July 31, 2026 at 8:08 AM UTC
0
Nap of the day is Vicar Street in the 5.30
The Galway Festival reverts to its evening slot on day five, with racing getting under way at 5pm at Ballybrit. That means there is time for punters to take in the earlier eight-race card from Glorious Goodwood before turning their attention to Galway.
While this is officially a mixed card, there are six Flat races taking place at tonight’s meeting, with two chases supplementing them. The 1m 4f handicap at 6.35pm is the feature race and is worth €64,790 (about £55,500) to winning connections.
Horse racing tips – Galway Festival day five
Odds provided by Sky Bet and correct at the time of publication.
HARRY REYNOLDS' TIPS
5.00 Galway
Otherworldly ⭐⭐⭐ @ 7/4
Go to bookmaker
5.30 Galway
Vicar Street (nap) ⭐⭐⭐ @ 11/2
Go to bookmaker
8.40 Galway
Uxmal ⭐⭐⭐ @ 5/6
Go to bookmaker
5.00 Galway – Irish EBF Median Auction Maiden (7f)
Otherworldly was considered good enough to take his chance in a Group 3 on his second start, despite finishing runner-up on debut.
Having finished sixth of seven behind the subsequent Coventry Stakes winner Great Barrier Reef, Otherworldly now drops back into calmer waters and can shed his maiden tag at the third attempt.
Advertisement
The selection’s dam is a half-sister to five-time Group 1 winner Giant’s Causeway. There are a host of other winners in Otherworldly’s pedigree too, including his half-brother Ghaly, who achieved a peak rating of 105 during his career.
This looks like a very ordinary race to me, so if Otherworldly can produce a similar performance to the one he showed on debut, it could be enough to win.
Selection: 5.00pm Galway – Otherworldly ⭐⭐⭐
5.30 Galway – Beginners Chase (2m 6½f)
Having been off the track for over 10 months, a third-placed finish on his reappearance and chasing debut was a perfectly satisfactory effort from Vicar Street (nap). He arguably should have won that 3m 1f contest, too, but was understandably tired in the closing stages.
On his previous run, Vicar Street finished second in a Listed race behind Sticktotheplan, who went on to win the Grade 2 Persian War Novices’ Hurdle at Chepstow, so that is very good form.
If it was the distance that caught Willie Mullins’ gelding out on his last run, rather than tiredness, the drop back to 2m 6½f is another positive.
Assuming he progresses from his comeback run, Vicar Street should give jockey Harry Cobden another Galway winner. He looks to be the bet of the day on this card.
Selection: 5.30pm Galway – Vicar Street (nap) ⭐⭐⭐
8.40 Galway – Conditions Race (1m 6f)
It has been tough for Joseph O’Brien to keep his seven-year-old Uxmal sound, but when he is on the track, he has shown a lot of ability.
The pinnacle of his career was winning the Queen Alexandra Stakes at Royal Ascot two years ago, but he has failed to win in three starts since. He was absent for over a year after that victory, and those three defeats have been in Group 2, Group 3 and Listed company.
There was nothing wrong with Uxmal’s reappearance at Limerick a month ago, when he finished third, just four lengths behind Layfayette. That was also over an obviously inadequate trip of 1m 4½f.
Stepping back up in trip today is sure to suit Uxmal, who is the class act here. He should find himself back in the winners’ enclosure in the final race on the card.
Selection: 8.40pm Galway – Uxmal ⭐⭐⭐
Harry Reynolds’ Day Five Galway Festival racing tips – in brief -
5.00 Galway – Otherworldly
5.30 Galway – Vicar Street (nap)
8.40 Galway – Uxmal
Star ratings – and alert – explained
Stars denote strength of selection (maximum five). The odds are provided by Sky Bet and correct at the time of writing – and you can find out where they rank in our table of the best betting sites in the UK.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Confident selection⭐⭐⭐⭐ Strong fancy⭐⭐⭐ Fair claims⭐⭐ Tentative choice⭐ Minimum confidence🚨= G1 race
Source: “AOL Sports”
