Wednesday evening’s eight race card at The Curragh saw doubles for Aidan O’Brien and Ryan Moore, while Mr Percy and Gazelle D’Or won the two €50,000 handicaps sponsored by Sky Bet.
Sky Bet Race To The Ebor Handicap (Premier Handicap)
Mr Percy (2/1) earned a place in the Sky Bet Ebor at York in August by winning the SkyBet Race To The Ebor Handicap over a mile and six furlongs.
Carrying bottom weight of 8 stone 7 pounds this evening, the Joseph O’Brien-trained son of Sir Percy had just a neck to spare at the line, under five-pound claimer, Wayne Hassett.
Jabbar (25/1), from the Ger O’Leary stable took the runner-up position, while the eight-year-old Helvic Dream (25/1) took third for Noel Meade and Dylan Browne McMonagle.
Sky Bet Handicap
The €50,000 Sky Bet Handicap (Premier Handicap) went to the Michael Grassick-handled Equiano filly Gazelle D’Or (14/1).
Ridden by Cork jockey Wayne Lordan, the Aidan Gleeson and Joseph Keeling-owned three-year-old had won three times previously from five to six furlongs.
Today, she held off Brigid’s Cloak (11/2) by a length, with Jorge Alvares (7/2 favourite) a neck further back in third for Ger Lyons and stable jockey Colin Keane.
Wootton Bassett Double
Two juvenile colts by Coolmore Stud’s sire of the moment, Wootton Bassett, won the first two maidens on the card.
Amadeus Mozart (10/11 favourite) took the opening SkyBet For The Fans Irish EBF Maiden for Aidan O’Brien and Ryan Moore by half a length.
With three runners in the field from Ballydoyle, a Coolmore partners-owned horse filled the runner-up spot as well with the fast finishing grey Dorset (5/1) in the hand of Wayne Lordan.
The double was quickly completed in the next, the Businessplus.ie Irish EBF Maiden when Flushing Meadows (5/2) took the win.
The 80/1 outside The Piper’s Call, ridden by S T McCullagh, took the second post, one and a half-lengths behind the winner. North Coast (11/) and Dylan Browne McMonagle took third for Joseph O’Brien, while another Ballydoyle horse, Puerto Rico (10/1) claimed fourth.
Maiden winners for Harrington and O’Donoghue
The third maiden of the evening, The Spar Shop At The Curragh Maiden went to the Shane Foley-ridden Cold Hearted (5/1).
Placed in four of her seven previous starts, the Blue Point three-year-old filly got the better of a battle with race favourite Stella Alpina (10/11), by half a length, with the same distance back to Marlborough Place (7/2) in third.
The Gannon Interiors Fillies Maiden was won by It’s A Heartbeat (7/1) and Ronan Whelan, who has recently returned to action from injury.
Fourth on her racecourse debut at Naas in April, the daughter of Too Darn Hot was a two and a half-length winner for handler John O’Donoghue.
The second, Jannah Star (13/8 favourite), was another placing on the evening for the Dylan Browne McMonagle and Joseph O’Brien combination, while the well-fancied Tanoya (5/2) from the Paddy Twomey yard claimed third spot, a further two and half lengths behind.
The Sky Bet Extra Places Every Day went the way of Midnight Horizon (7/1) for handler Denis Hogan and rider Joey Sheridan.
