Ballet completes quick 7/1 double for O'Brien & Heffernan

Bolshoi Ballet showed the benefit of his debut run at Newmarket when completing a quick 7/1 juvenile double for connections in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF (C & G) Maiden at Leopardstown.

Trained by Aidan O’Brien for the Coolmore partners and, like Willow in the fillies maiden half-an-hour later, ridden by Seamie Heffernan he was prominent throughout in this mile event.

The reaction was fairly instant when Heffernan asked the Galileo colt to quicken at the furlong pole, and the well-backed evens favourite soon drew clear to score by four lengths.

O’Reilly took the runner-up berth with Moktaffy a neck further back in third.

Heffernan said, “I fancied him in Newmarket but he was too green. Ryan said he liked him and the next day he’d be very hard beat.

“He’s from a good family and he’s a good mover. He has a big future.

“He was whinnying going to the start. I was going to make the running and I said company is a bit better. When I had company it worked and when I let him go he quickened.”