< Await The Dawn returned to action in some style with an authoritative victory in the Fermoy Race at Cork.

The contest lost a lot of its spark in the absence of Vita Venturi and Enchanted Evening, reducing the field to three, and Aidan O'Brien's colt was sent off the 8-15 favourite on his first outing since flopping in the Champagne Stakes at Doncaster last September.

Johnny Murtagh sat in second as Zerashan towed them along and moved up to challenge on the home turn before putting the race swiftly to bed, with the pacesetter rallying to finish a length and a quarter behind at the line.

The feature race on the card, the five-furlong Scarteen Handicap, went to the Tommy Stack-trained 5-1 chance Celerina

Wayne Lordan had the consistent filly well placed just behind the pace set by Calm Bay and delivered a telling challenge two furlongs out, taking charge and comfortably holding Flash McGahon to win by two lengths.< The Grey Rebel third on all three previous outings, was smartly away in the Gortnagross Maiden and stuck to his task well under Colm O'Donoghue to record his first victory.

The David Marnane-trained three-year-old (6-1) built a decisive advantage heading for the final furlong and had little trouble resisting My Girl Anna to win by two lengths.

Dermot Weld put blinkers on Declan's Warrior and the colt stepped up considerably on his unplaced debut effort at the track earlier this month to take the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden.

Pat Smullen grabbed the rail on the 10-1 shot - who is owned by the trainer - and led all the way, holding Maundays Bay s late charge a shade cosily to score by half a length.

Weld and Smullen made it a double in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Median Auction Maiden when Honey Of A Kitten (100-30) ran on resolutely down the straight after leading all the way to hold off Warning Flag by a neck.