Pin Your Hopes strikes at 25/1 in 1m4f maiden

Punters were on the backfoot after the early action at Dundalk this afternoon, with an opening 20/1 winner followed by the 25/1 victory of Pin Your Hopes in the Crowne Plaza Hotel Leading Jockey & Trainer Championship Maiden.

The Rock Of Gibraltar gelding had shown enough earlier this year when placed four times in maidens to encourage connections to buy him back in for 10,000 guineas at the Newmarket Horses-In-Training Sale in October and that decision was well rewarded here.

The Andy Oliver-trained three-year-old made headway early in the straight and challenged between horses from over a furlong out.

He got on top in the closing stages for Conor Hoban to beat 5/6 favourite Dances With Stars by three quarters of a length with Tooreen Angel another half a length back in third.

S’All Good Man held every chance but could find no extra in the final 100 yards finishing another head away in fourth.

Hoban said, "His form earlier on in his career was pretty solid and he had a rating in the 80s so it wasn't a surprise he won as Andy said he thought he had him in good form. He told me to ride him with plenty of confidence, get him to switch off early and get him to finish out.

“In fairness he switched off and picked up well. I always thought from the two to the one I was going to get there. At the line I thought he won nicely.

“I was drawn wide, and the last day he ran up here he was a bit keen, so I was always going to slot in and ride him to come home well. The way the race panned out it worked lovely.”

(GC & AM)