IT was a fitting result on the Curragh’s Pat Smullen Race Day that the feature prize was captured by a horse trained by Dermot Weld and bred by Eva-Maria Bucher Haefner’s Moyglare Stud - two figures who were key in the late champion jockey’s life.

Coeur D’or has been the gift that keeps on giving for owners Mark Phelan and Stephen O’Connor, and the 8/1 shot was delivered supremely by Chris Hayes to capture a typically competitive edition of the €80,000 Paddy Power Supporting Cancer Trials Ireland Irish Cambridgeshire.

The late-lunging neck success over bold front runner Blues Emperor brought up a big-handicap double, with the winner having previously struck in the Colm Quinn BMW Mile at the Galway Festival off 5lb lower.

There could yet be more big-handicap riches to come for the lightly raced seven-year-old too, with a €150,000 premier pot up for grabs back at the Curragh at the Irish Champions Festival.

Weld, who was winning the Irish Cambridgeshire for the third time (previous wins with Saibot in 1994 and Jassaar in 2019), said: “He’s a tough, very genuine and game horse. In his younger days he was very immature so I gave him a lot of time and it all paid dividends.

“He loves to come from off the pace; he’s very consistent. He ran very well [when not beaten far in third] in the Nasrullah. Ground-wise, he’s pretty versatile but he doesn’t want extremes. The Northfields Handicap here will be his next race.”

Moyglare success

There was also a poignant winner in the opening contest of the afternoon as Tamrat (12/1) made a winning introduction for Ger Lyons and Moyglare Stud, carrying colours very familiar to Smullen.

Tamrat is one of only four Lyons-trained juveniles entered for the Group 1 Goffs Vincent O’Brien National Stakes but connections appear likely to take smaller steps in the immediate future following this seven-furlong win in the Keeper’s Heart 10 Year Old Single Malt Whiskey Irish EBF Maiden under Colin Keane.

Assistant trainer Shane Lyons said: “We’re delighted to win this, especially with the day that’s in it. He’s a big horse.

“He hasn’t missed a day but our horses do take a run. He’s a gentleman at home and from the word go we’ve liked him.”

Daze delivers

Another two-year-old with a likeable profile is the Johnny Murtagh-trained Asian Daze, who followed up her Gowran maiden win in the seven-furlong Plusvital Supplements Nursery Handicap.

Successful rider Danny Sheehy received an excellent reception when returning to the winner’s enclosure aboard the 9/4 favourite, who was greeted by members of the Armchair Jockeys Syndicate and the Kildare All-Ireland-winning ladies intermediate football team, who were guests of the racecourse. The team includes Murtagh’s daughters Lauren and Grace.

“This filly is not big but she’s tough, she’s hardy and she just loves galloping,” said Murtagh.

“Who knows where she’s going to end up? I’m delighted for the owner-breeder Phelim Dolan - it’s the first horse I’ve had for him. He has a few of his friends and family involved as well.”

A TILT at the Group 1 Bet365 Fillies’ Mile could be on the cards for Opera Singer after she became the latest blacktype-winning Ballydoyle two-year-old of the season with an easy success in the Group 3 Newtownanner Stud Irish EBF Stakes.

Bred to be classy as a half-sister to Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf winner Hit It A Bomb and Cheveley Park Stakes scorer Brave Anna, the Coolmore partners’ daughter of Justify picked up smartly to see off stablemate Brilliant by no less than six and a half lengths as even-money favourite under Seamie Heffernan.

Speaking after his 35th two-year-old winner of the season - and his eighth in blacktype two-year-old company for 2023 - O’Brien said: “These Justifys improve as soon as they go up in distance - they take off. She’s a lovely filly and I’d say she’s the kind of filly who could suit the Fillies’ Mile.

“She’s straightforward and goes forward. I’d say she has more stamina than the likes of Hit It A Bomb.”

Hood holds tough

A double for O’Brien, Heffernan, the Coolmore partners and Justify was completed in the Group 3 Snow Fairy Fillies Stakes when Red Riding Hood recorded the biggest victory of her career.

Given she had trailed the field in the Oaks and finished no better than ninth in any of her last four starts, her 14/1 success in a first-time tongue-tie came as a surprise. The 98-rated performer battled back to deny globetrotting three-year-old American Sonja by a neck.

Stable representative Chris Armstrong said: “Seamus he gave her a peach of a ride because she’s not a straightforward filly. She has stacks of ability but through probably weakness and immaturity it’s only starting to come to the fore now.

“She’ll probably come back here for the Irish Champions Festival for the Blandford Stakes. Hopefully this will be a good confidence booster for her.”

Kate comes up trumps

Class came to the fore in the inaugural Pat Smullen Cancer Trials Ireland Charity Race as Kate Harrington partnered hugely likeable recent Shergar Cup winner The Very Man to success for her mother Jessica in a well-received contest.

It had looked as though Ber Fahey, riding Bukhill for her husband Peter, could play a serious part in proceedings but the Dan Kiely and Rob Kearney-owned 4/9 favourite pulled out enough to score by three quarters of a length.

Hannah Smullen, riding Amir Kabir in the race in honour of her late father Pat, finished a creditable third.

Kate Harrington said: “That was really special. Today is all about Cancer Trials Ireland, a charity very close to my heart. They helped to keep my dad alive for a year when he was battling cancer and mum was one of the first recipients in Ireland of a newly-approved immunotherapy, along with chemotherapy.

“Everyone at home has seen what an amazing recovery that mum has shown over the last year and that’s what was really close to my heart for doing this. It’s such a worthy cause. This is not about people suffering with cancer now, it’s about people down the line - your grandkids and their kids.”

PADDY Twomey’s ambitious placing with €240,000 breeze-up recruit Letsbefrankaboutit paid off in spades when the once-raced maiden third showed his quality to land the Group 3 Heider Family Stables Round Tower Stakes over six furlongs.

Carrying the colours of Galway Plate-winning owners Alymer Stud, the Sioux Nation colt - who joined Twomey from Katie Walsh’s Greenhills Farm - travelled sweetly before picking up well to deny a gallant effort from Mansa Musa as 2/1 favourite.

Betfair Sportsbook responded by cutting the winner to 16/1 (from 33/1) for the Juddmonte Middle Park Stakes and the same price (from 50/1) for the Darley Dewhurst Stakes.

Twomey said: “He learned a lot on his debut when he had to race on his own and won his side. He was a bit babyish before that run but he was very good today - he didn’t put a foot wrong and did what I hoped he’d do.

“It takes a lot for me to run a maiden in a Group 3 but I just thought he might be fit for it. He’s a big horse so we won’t overdo it this year and hopefully we’ll have a nice horse for a couple of years to come.”

Arnhem on top

Over the same course and distance but in a lesser grade, Arnhem gained a deserved first success since September 2020, having rattled the crossbar with four seconds and four thirds from just 11 runs in the intervening period.

Leslie and David Laverty’s seven-year-old, trained in Co Down by Matt Quinn, finished off strongly to cause a 14/1 upset in the Bord Na Mona Recycling Apprentice Handicap under Jack Kearney.

“We’re over the moon - you couldn’t ask for a nicer place to have a winner,” said Bernie Quinn, daughter of the winning trainer.

“We’ve had him since May. He’s had brilliant form in the past and he deserves that win. We only have him, another horse as part of a syndicate for David and a couple of breakers at home, that’s all.”