Pat Malone and Arthur Moore combined to land the featured Heineken Handicap Hurdle with Owen Bart at a rain-sodden Sligo yesterday evening.
Malone, bridging a six year gap since his last success for the Moore stable on Mountain Bloom at Tralee in 1992, produced the five-year-old with a well-timed challenge to lead in the straight for a three-quarters of a length win from the front-running Heart Of Avondale.
"Pat is a neighbour of mine, and a real hard-working fellow," said Moore, who has a handicap hurdle on the opening night of the Galway Festival in mind for his charge.
Malone has been attached to the Michael Grassick stable in recent years, and the Curragh trainer enhanced his fine record at this venue when Jilted readily justified odds-on support in the Beltra Maiden. The daughter of Pursuit Of Love was always travelling well under in-from rider Eddie Ahern and quickened past Lady Linzi at the furlong pole to score by three and a half lengths. Grassick indicated afterwards that his filly could turn out again in a mile handicap at the Curragh on Sunday.
David Arbuthnot resisted the temptation to run Premier Generation at Royal Ascot and felt he had made the right decision in coming to Nottingham yesterday after the gelding just prevailed in a thrilling finish to the 49's Sun Chemical Handicap Stakes.
Premier Generation was one of several horses having trouble finding daylight inside the final quarter mile, but when he did so Simon Whitworth dashed in through a gap to lead well inside the final furlong and then just hold on in a three way photo finish.
