Fairyhouse report: The flying sprinter Osterhase supplied a perfect big-race finish to Fran Berry's cross-country dash that took him from Tipperary to Fairyhouse in just over half an hour yesterday.
Berry rode the first two winners at Tipperary for John Oxx and the last of them, Vorteeva, was still sweating as the jockey dashed for a helicopter to take him north to Co Meath.
He had less than three-quarters of an hour to make the journey and weigh out before the Listed Bulmers Belgrave Stakes, but Berry's race was successful with five minutes to spare.
If anything, that turned out to be the easiest, and least dramatic, part of the job, because Osterhase had to battle back from a seemingly beaten position to edge out the English raider Borderlescott by a head.
The latter was backed into favouritism and looked to have got about half a length in front of Osterhase inside the furlong pole only for his rival to battle back in great style.
"He's waiting for them these days, and just wants to eyeball them," grinned Berry afterwards. "The trip from Tipperary was tight for time but as long as there were no delays or problems it was doable. And this is some horse."
It was a fourth course-and-distance win for Osterhase but the veteran could get another Group One chance in York's Nunthorpe Stakes next month.
"It is a possible but it would mean taking on Dandy Man again. And there's the Flying Five at the Curragh several days later," said trainer John Mulhern, who praised his assistant Steven McCarthy. "He has dedicated five years of his life to looking after this horse."
Kieren Fallon gave a nerveless last-to-first display on Aidan O'Brien's Rol'over Beethoven to win the sprint handicap and successfully start a week set to include a vital High Court appearance in London on Thursday.
Christophe Soumillon has been confirmed as available to ride Hurricane Run in Sunday's King George if Fallon's appeal against a Horseracing Regulatory Authority ban that prevents him riding in the UK is unsuccessful.
But that didn't appear to be playing on the former champion jockey's mind as he later doubled up in the nine-furlong handicap on Flying Knight for the Curragh trainer Noel Lawlor.
The in-form Declan McDonogh narrowed the gap in the jockeys' championship to just three behind John Murtagh when a double took him to the 45-winner mark for the season.
Rebel Rover justified favouritism in the mile-and-a-half maiden but needed a prolonged battle up the straight to see off Kalinina and Moondreamer.
"He made hard work of it, and I don't know how good a maiden it was, but he always looked like getting there even if it was a bit firm for him. We will see what mark he gets and bring him to Galway," said trainer Kevin Prendergast, who also supplied El Soprano to win the juvenile maiden.
El Soprano was a length and a half too good for the favourite, Mythical Echo, and part owner Denis Sheehy, who also co-owns Rebel Rover, grinned: "It won't seem such a long way home to Kinsale now."
Also on the double were Michael Kinane and John Oxx and after the concluding conditions race cut up to just three runners, Danak was left with a relatively simple task to make it two from two in his career to date.
Nevertheless, he was impressive in beating Taqeeem by four lengths and Oxx said: "He won like a useful horse. It's quick, but we might run him in the Platinum Stakes at Cork the Monday after Galway."
Maraldiya looked to get first run on the heavy favourite Striking in the seven-furlong maiden and showed the benefit of her debut with a two-and-a-half-length victory.
