Victorious Fairy on course for Classic trials, says Weld

DERMOT WELD has high hopes for Yulong Gold Fairy next season following her victory in the valuable Foran Equine Auction Race Final at Naas yesterday.

The daughter of Mount Nelson got off the mark at the third time of asking when winning at Galway in August and backed that up with a six-length success under Pat Smullen, staying on strongly through the final furlong to take the €70,800 first prize.

Weld said: “She was impressive. She did it well when she won in Galway for us and this has always been the plan.

“We’ll put her away for the year now and look forward to her being a stakes filly for next year.

“She’ll appear in one of the 1,000 Guineas trials next spring. She was coming home very nicely there so it’s logical to try her in one of the Classic trials next spring.”

Colin Keane, who ended the day with a treble and now leads Smullen 90-83 in race for the jockeys’ championship, steered Elegant Pose to victory in a thrilling renewal of the Garnet Stakes.

Smullen looked set to add to his tally when striking the front on board Making Light approaching the furlong marker and kicking clear on Weld’s inmate. However, the Ger Lyons-trained 9/4 favourite began to really motor late on and got up right on the line to take the Listed contest by a short head.

IMPROVE

Lyons said: “I didn’t see that happening in the last furlong. She’s some little titch. She’s green as grass and never travelled like we thought she would. We thought coming back to the mile would be no problem to her.

“She can only improve for a winter on her back because we’ve been training her with next year in mind. The sky is the limit and we have a lovely filly on our hands.”

Lyons and Keane had already got on the scoresheet in the Premier Nursery courtesy of Moonlight Bay and they brought up the three-timer with Mustajeer (11/4 fav), who proved three-and-a-quarter lengths too good for the Smullen-ridden Espoir D’Soleil.

Red Stars (9/1) ground out a determined victory for John Oxx in the Bluebell Stakes at Naas.

The Listed finale over 12 furlongs proved a real slog and for a long away it looked as though the front-running Tilly’s Chilli may hang on under Colm O’Donoghue.

However, Declan McDonough’s mount wore down the 20/1 outsider in the closing stages to record her first victory of the season by half-a-length.

Ballyoisin defied a welter-burden to win the Handicap Chase at Cork.

Running off a lofty mark of 150, Enda Bolger employed the services of 7lb conditional jockey Donal McInerney to help ease the task somewhat.

Given the ease of victory, though, Bolger need not have worried as Ballyoisin (6/1) stamped his class all over his rivals.