Impressive Andy Dufresne completes Elliott’s Down Royal double
It paid to trust in-form connections at Down Royal as Gordon Elliott topped and tailed the card – with his well-backed bumper winner Andy Dufresne proving particularly impressive.
A second winner on the card for owner J P McManus as well, 8-15 favourite Andy Dufresne was a point-to-point scorer at Borris in March – when he represented Elliott’s head girl Camilla Sharples.
The son of Doyen was then sold to McManus for £330,000 – and he could not have done any more on his racecourse debut.
Rider Derek O’Connor blamed himself for letting the five-year-old “get a bit keen”, which necessitated a front-running approach.
His connections and supporters had no further worries, though, because Andy Dufresne travelled through the two-miler like a good horse – easily accounting for Willie Mullins’ Golden Spread by 10 lengths.
“We think he’s a nice horse – we always thought a lot of him,” said Elliott.
“We were waiting on a bit of rain for him.
“We think he’s as nice as any bumper horse we’ve run all year. I’ll have to speak to the owners to see about whether he goes to Cheltenham.”
Only six went to post for the opening Irish Stallion Farms EBF Rated Novice Chase – but with all bar one 5-1 or under in a trappy heat, Elliott’s 5-2 favourite Monatomic came out on top.
Sweet-travelling Monatomic eventually got the better of the gritty front-runner Peacocks Secret by a length and a half.
Elliott trains the Jack Kennedy-ridden Monatomic for Gigginstown House Stud.
He said: “He has been threatening to win one of them for a while – he has been running well in them all.
“The conditions race suited him, and the jockey (Jack Kennedy) gave him a great ride.”
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With first-time cheek-pieces on, Denwork (11-2) gave Gigginstown another success when claiming the Cash Out On Horse Racing Multiples At BetVictor Rated Novice Hurdle.
From the front, Joseph O’Brien’s charge won well by six and a half lengths, supplying Rachael Blackmore with her 75th victory of the campaign – putting her just five behind table-topper Paul Townend.
The other J P McManus winner on the day was 7-1 shot Pack Your Bags in the two-and-a-half-mile handicap chase.
Breaking his maiden at the 20th attempt, Pack Your Bags was continuing the excellent run of form being enjoyed by trainer Robert Tyner and jockey Philip Enright.
Another to maintain pleasing recent momentum was Paul Nolan as his 9-2 co-favourite Cresus De Grissay displayed stamina in abundance under Bryan Cooper in the three-mile handicap chase.
A first-time tongue-strap may have helped as Curious Times delighted his local connections – owners, the Sloans, and trainer Stuart Crawford – in the near two-and-a-half-mile maiden hurdle.
In-form J J Slevin got 16-1 shot Curious Times home by two and three-quarters of a length from market leader Black Tears.
Tom Foley had his first Down Royal winner when Goaheadmakemyday brought off a gamble in the mares’ handicap hurdle under Cathal Landers.
Those who backed the Foley runner from 8-1 into 9-2 favourite were rewarded when she asserted before the last for a two-and-three-quarter-length win from Reine Fee.