Daylight Katie digs deep for Grade 3 glory

Placed in Graded company at the Aintree and Punchestown Festivals in the spring in bumper company, Daylight Katie preserved her unbeaten record over hurdles with success in the Lough Construction mares novice hurdle at Down Royal on Friday.

Aidan Fitzgerald’s Lisronagh four-year-old winner was sporting the colours of David Dunsdon, who bought the now six-year-old for £110,000 following the victory, but she had to overcome a mistake at the third-last flight in this two-mile contest.

Strongly pressed by Jeremy’s Flame, the Bonbon Rose dug deep to prevail by a length and a quarter in the hands of Davy Russell to provide Gordon Elliott with an opening race double on day one of the Down Royal Festival of Racing.

“I don’t think she travelled as well as today. I think she had a harder race than we thought the last day and it took a lot of her,” said Elliott.

“This is her first day over these type hurdles, she was over the EasyFix ones the last day (at Fairyhouse).

“There are negatives and positives with her performance there. The negative was that she didn’t travel as well as she should, but the positive was how wll she came back and battled after that mistake at the third last.

“I’m not going to put a saddle on her for the next ten days to freshen her up and then I will talk to David (Dunsdon) the owner and Ryan McElligott.”

Elliott also reported that Fury Road, a Dromahane winner for Pat Doyle, who won the opening maiden hurdle by 18 lengths would now be stepped up to Graded company following his emphatic victory on hurdling debut.