Ballymac Deniro clocks rivals at Limerick with brilliant Leger run
BALLYMAC DENIRO, easy to back beforehand and deposed as favourite by Wi Can James, proved the market all wrong with a stunning track record performance in round two of the 1XBet Irish St Leger over 550 yards at Limerick.
Liam Dowling's star, runner-up in the English Derby final at Towcester earlier in the year, overcame a modest break in heat two to pace up and lead by the first bend after which, even in such a high-quality field, he was only racing against the clock.
Powering on, he scored by three lengths from fastest first round winner Swords Diamond in a brilliant 29.14sec, an improvement of seven spots on the previous best of Jaytee Taylor set in the first round of the same competition five years ago.
Graham Holland was responsible for the second and third, Slippery Felix, there but roles had been reversed in the opening heat when his Irish Derby champion Bockos Gold (29.60sec) led home outsider Bills Harbour with Dowling's Solo And Go third.
Holland completed a double in heat three courtesy of Highbury Days (29.70sec), a treble - for the second week running - arriving when Roaming Shelby took the finale in 29.65sec.
Other heats went to Michael O'Donovan's Skywalker Bruno (29.74sec) and Pat Buckley's Singalong Magic (29.89sec).
The whole of the Irish St Leger is live on sisracing.tv
Saturday's 1XBet Irish St Leger semi-finals
Irish St Leger outright betting: 3 Ballymac Deniro, 4 Bockos Gold, 11/2 Getup The Boy, Swords Diamond, 7 Roaming Shelby, 14 Ballyea Warrior, 16 Singalong Magic, Solo And Go, 20 Lennies Eddie, Skywalker Bruno, 25 bar (e-w 1/4 1,2,3).
