The two-day Irish Champions Festival begins at Leopardstown on Saturday, with action the following day at The Curragh.

Saturday’s bumper 9-race card at the South County Dublin venue includes three Group 1 races, with the highlight, the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes, the weekend’s feature, going to post at 5.00pm. The three Group 1s are backed up by a Group 2, a Group 3 and a Listed race, while there are also three Premier Handicaps down for decision.

The Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes is usually one of the season’s highlights. The 1m 2 furlong contest for three-year-olds and upwards has seen Aidan O’Brien win six of the last seven editions of the race, with Delacroix (2025), Auguste Rodin (2023), Luxembourg (2022), St Mark’s Basilica (2021), Magical (2019 & 2020).

First three in Juddmonte International re-oppose

On Saturday, the Ballydoyle handler’s main hope will be the Coral-Eclipse winner at Sandown, Constitution River – beaten on his last outing in the Juddmonte International at York last month.

Item, the winner of the Juddmonte International, and Almaqam, the runner-up, will represent Andrew Balding and Ed Walker respectively. There was only a head between the two English-trained runners at York last time, with three lengths back to Constitution River – though Aidan O’Brien did later blame poor race tactics for the defeat of the son of Wootton Bassett.

The 2025 Betfred Derby and Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby winner, Lambourn, has also been declared by the Coolmore partners, as has Hawk Mountain, with both likely to set the pace at different stages of the race.

Jessica Harrington’s recent German Group 1 winner Hotazhell is also among the field, as is A Boy Names Susie, who finished behind Constitution River in both the Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly, and the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown.

Interestingly, English handler George Scott supplemented his Deauville Group 3 winner Wimbledon Hawkeye at a cost of €75,000, and will be hoping to get some return for the outlay.

Coolmore America ‘Justify’ Matron Stakes

The Group 1 Coolmore America ‘Justify’ Matron Stakes at 3.55pm is for fillies and mares over a mile. Eight different trainers have won this prize since 2018, and twice it has gone for export – to Karl Burke – with Fallen Angel last season, and Laurens in 2018. Both Donnacha O’Brien (2024, Porta Fortuna) and his brother Joseph (2019, Iridessa) have claimed this contest in recent years, though their father, Aidan, hasn’t won since Hydrangea in 2017.

The race has been good for favourites in recent times, with the past three winning, namely Fallen Angel (9/4), Porta Fortuna (5/4) and Tahiyra (5/6).

English trainers hold strong hand in Matron Stakes

English trainers, Andrew Balding and Karl Burke, hold a strong hand in this year’s renewal. Balding’s Blue Bolt goes in search of a third Group 1, and has had the upper hand this season on four-time Group 1 winner Precise, who re-opposes on Saturday.

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Grow a Garden has received the Beanstalk Finale update on September 12, 2026, expanding the ongoing Beanstalk content with new features, rewards, plants, pets, cosmetics, and quality-of-life improvements. The latest part of the event adds a new Beanstalk variant, introduces the Giant’s Basket, and brings a new Mysterious Old Man who is looking for specific fruits to send up the Beanstalk to the Giant.

This article contains all the official patch notes for Grow a Garden Beanstalk Finale, including the new plants, pets, cosmetics, features, and fixes.

Official patch notes for Grow a Garden Beanstalk Finale update

The following patch notes have been derived from the game’s official Discord server. Here are the official patch notes for Beanstalk Finale in Grow a Garden.

“Beanstalk

• Added 1 new beanstalk variant

Giant’s Basket

• A Mysterious Old Man has arrived beneath the Beanstalk…
• He is looking for very specific fruits to send up the Beanstalk to the Giant
• Submit the fruit the Mysterious Old Man is looking for to the basket to send it up to the Giant
• Each time you successfully submit the required plant you will get to pick 1 out of 3 rewards

Mini Achievements

• Complete all the Beanstalk themed mini achievements for a variety of rewards!
• New seeds, pets, & more rewards to unlock!

Plants

• Everglow Helix
• Nebula Barb
• Brambleberry

Pets

Cosmetics

• Beanstalk Fence
• Beanstalk Statue

Fixes, Changes, & QOL

• Added the ability to shovel all your plants in a specific garden save slot. Favourited plants will not be shoveled
• Made the Chimpanzee Pet Achievement requirement
• Extended the season pass
• Fixed a bug related to the Cloudhound
• Fixed a bug related to the Angler Fish
• Fixed a bug related to the Mistletoad
• Fixed a bug where restocking the Friendly Giant shop with sheckles wouldn’t reset all of the time
• Fixed various UI related bugs
• Fixed various bugs related to plants
• Fixed various bugs related to pets
• Made various performance improvements
• & lots more!”

FAQs on Grow a Garden

What is new in Grow a Garden Beanstalk Part 3?

Beanstalk Part 3 adds a new Beanstalk variant, the Giant’s Basket, Beanstalk-themed mini achievements, new plants, a pet, cosmetics, rewards, and several fixes and quality-of-life changes.

What plants were added in Beanstalk Part 3?

The three plants added in Beanstalk Part 3 are Everglow Helix, Nebula Barb, and Brambleberry.

What pet was added in Beanstalk Part 3?

Beanstalk Bear is the new pet added in the Beanstalk Part 3 update.