You Raised Me up and Mark Walsh lead eventual third Belfast Banter over the last© Photo Healy Racing
The Remembering Tommy McGivern Maiden Hurdle went comfortably enough to the 11/10 favourite You Raised Me Up in the hands of Mark Walsh.
Not seen since finishing an excellent third in a valuable handicap hurdle at the Dublin Racing Festival, the 130-rated got into contention turning for home with two to jump.
He was in front at the last and and didn’t need to be hard-ridden to score by two and three quarter lengths from the staying-on Run For Oscar (2/1), with Belfast Banter (9/2) another half a length away in third.
The Presenting 7-year-old, a bumper winner at the Galway Festival a couple of years ago, was getting off the mark at the fifth attempt over flights.
Winning trainer Martin Brassil said: “We were hoping he'd win one of those.
“He had some nice form from last year. We brought him to Cheltenham but the ground was too soft for him. We decided we'd keep him for Punchestown and then we had no Punchestown.
“He's a nice horse going forward and he'd be a better horse with less on his back in a good handicap somewhere.
“He had a lovely run in Leopardstown when he was third in his first handicap and hopefully there will be a nice race in him somewhere.
“I'm hoping that the maiden win shouldn't adjust his mark too much.”
Additional reporting by Gary Carson
