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Galway Festival Day 5 Tips - Best Bets & Predictions on Friday

jon-vine
Jon Vine
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Last updated: Thu 30 Jul 2026 17:02
The Galway Festival continues Friday with a thrilling mix of jumps and flat races. Key betting tips include Rising Dust (20/1) in the Galway Blazers Handicap Chase, Thread Of Gold (3/1) in the Guinness Handicap, and Vantage Code (7/2) in the Hop House 13 Handicap. Emmet Mullins and Willie Mullins train the top selections, both showing strong track records with their horses. Bettors are advised to watch out for these highlighted runners in their respective races for potential value and excitement.
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  • Best bets for day five of the 2026 Galway Festival
  • This famous meeting continues on Friday 31st July
  • Thread Of Gold and Vantage Code feature in our day five tips
curragh racecourse
Irish horse racing. (Getty)

The Galway Festival continues on Friday evening, and attendees can look forward to another exciting card of jumps and flat racing.

Here are my best betting tips for Friday's card at Galway.

Galway Festival 2026 Day 5 Schedule


TimeTitle
5:00pmJames's Gate Irish EBF Median Auction Maiden (Class 2) 7f
5:30pmGuinness Beginners Chase (Class 2) 2m6½f
6:00pmGuinness Galway Blazers Handicap Chase (Class 2) 2m6½f
6:35pmGuinness Handicap (Class 2) 1m4f
7:10pmGuinness Irish EBF Fillies Maiden (Class 2) 1m4f
7:40pmArthur Guinness Handicap (Class 2) 1m½f
8:10pmHop House 13 Handicap (Class 2) 1m6f
8:40pmRockshore Refreshingly Irish Race (Class 2) 1m6f

Galway Festival Day 5 Tips - Friday 31st July


6:00pm Galway - Blazers Handicap Chase Tips


Willie Mullins plays a strong hand in this handicap chase, but I'm going to side with RISING DUST (20/1) for his nephew, Emmet Mullins.

Rising Dust ran up a brilliant sequence soon after joining Mullins' yard last season. Emmet's recruit won twice over hurdles, and then on his first three starts over fences around Thurles, including an impressive victory over some decent rivals in January. Donagh Meyler's mount was then well backed for the Ladbrokes Trophy at Kempton, but travelled wide throughout the contest and failed to see out the three-mile trip.

It was a similar story for Rising Dust in the Galway Plate Trial at Kilbeggan, where he raced wide and prominently for much of the contest before the tank emptied going into the final bend. A tongue-tie goes on for this high-profile assignment, and I'm sure Rising Dust will have come on for that return to action last month.

6:35pm Galway - Guinness Handicap Tips


Willie Mullins boasts a strong record in this Flat handicap too, and THREAD OF GOLD (3/1) looks worthy of his position at the head of the market.

Mullins' gelding won at odds of 11/1 on debut at the Curragh last August, before running against Epsom Derby winner Christmas Day in the Eyrefield Stakes at Leopardstown. Colin Keane took the ride as Thread Of Gold finished a close third behind Tim Toe on his return at Listowel, before claiming a nice victory under Wayne Lordan in a lucrative handicap at Leopardstown three weeks ago.

Tim Toe went on to run a blinder in the Ascot Stakes. Britannia third Jamestown finished third to Thread Of Gold at Leopardstown, and the runner-up, Diego El Queso, was an unlucky loser at Goodwood this week. Thread Of Gold is clearly a quality operator, and I doubt whether a nine-pound rise will stop him from following up at Galway.

8:10pm Galway - Hop House 13 Handicap Tips


Another short one to back on Friday is VANTAGE CODE (7/2), who makes his second appearance of the week for Galway-mad owners Pearse and Annette Mee.

Emmet Mullins' gelding showed little in maidens, but has improved with each handicap start. Vantage Code finished second at Roscommon in June, and ran a lovely race to finish third in the Gra Chocolates Handicap on the opening day of this famous meeting.

Emmet's three-year-old saw out 12-and-a-half furlongs well on his first start over the trip on Monday, and should have no trouble with this extended distance. Mullins has fitted a hood for this assignment, and Ben Coen jumps into the saddle for this much more winnable contest.

Verdict

Galway Festival Day 5 Tips:

Best Bet1: Thread Of Gold 6:35pm Galway @3/1 at BOYLE Sports - 5 Units
Best Bet2: Vantage Code 8:10pm Galway @7/2 at bet365 - 5 Units
Best Bet3: Rising Dust E/W 6:00pm Galway @20/1 at Hollywood bets - 5 Units
Thread Of Gold
6:35pm Galway
@3/1 - 5 Units
Bet £10 Get £40
in free bets

18+. New UK customers (Excluding NI) only. Min Deposit £10. Min stake £10. Min odds Evs. Free bet applied on 1st settlement of any qualifying bet. 30 days to qualify. Free bets expire in 7 days. Cashed out/Free Bets won’t apply. Account & Payment method restrictions apply. 1 Free Bet offer per customer, household & IP Address only. 18+. T&Cs apply.

Bet at BOYLE Sports
Vantage Code
8:10pm Galway
@7/2 - 5 Units
Bet £10 Get £30
with bonus code NEWBONUS

Available to new customers only. Make a qualifying deposit of £5 or more and claim the offer within 30 days of registering your account to qualify for 300% of that amount in Bet Credits, up to a maximum of £30 in Bet Credits. Once released, your Bet Credits will be held in your account balance and are non-withdrawable. Min deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as Bet Credits and are available for use upon settlement of qualifying bets. Min odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude Bet Credits stake. Registration required. Time limits and T&Cs apply. The bonus code NEWBONUS can be used during registration but does not change the offer amount in any way. #ad

Bet at bet365
Rising Dust E/W
6:00pm Galway
@20/1 - 5 Units
£30 Free Bet
Use promo code NEWBONUS

Claim £30 free bet & 20 Free Spins. Use the promo code NEWBONUS. New Hollywoodbets account holders. 18 years or older. United Kingdom residents only. T&Cs apply.

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