The latter horse was the 1-4 favourite as he made his Irish debut for Willie Mullins in the Grade Three, with Joseph O’Brien’s Naturally Nimble a 33-1 chance having been well beaten on his hurdling debut.
His prior Flat form was reasonable, however, and his pedigree an interesting one as he is a half-brother to the German Group-winning sprinter Namos.
Under Richard Deegan he travelled towards the rear of the six-strong field, and when drawing level with the favourite in the final stages, he was able to show his turn of foot to secure victory by a length and a half.
“He disappointed us a little bit last week so we said we’d hunt around here and see. He did it well,” said Deegan.
“They went a good gallop and the race probably fell apart a little bit in front of us and we were there to pick up the pieces. He stayed at it well.
“He was at a high level on the Flat, so hopefully he can keep coming along. He wants that nice ground.”
Naturally Nimble is now a 20-1 chance with Coral for the JCB Triumph Hurdle.