Bogardus and Gary Halpin pass the post first© Photo Healy Racing
Bogardus maintained his good form with an all-the-way victory in the apprentice handicap at Gowran Park.
Patrick Prendergast’s three-year-old gelding came here with a record of two wins and two second places interspersed in his last four runs. Punters latched on to that and backed him down from 13/2 to 11/2 for this extended mile and one race.
Gary Halpin dictated the fractions and got lower in the saddle with a quarter of a mile to race. There was still plenty in the tank though as the pair had enough to repel fast-finishing Russia Maria Star (7/2 favourite from 8/1 this morning) and Daigreen (10/1).
“He gets on very well with him and he's a good rider. He should have won a race for me on Smoker last week but he ran off the bend and dropped his stick. He came in and apologised and I told him it happens to the best of jockeys and that he'd ride a winner for me on Sunday. It's nice when it works out,” Patrick Prendergast said.
“The horse has done very well since he was gelded. I thought he would win the last day, but he didn't handle Tramore at all. He stays very well and is getting better. He'll make a nice hurdler or staying Flat horse next year. I'd be quite happy to keep him though as he handles Dundalk very well.
“Earlier in the year he was rated 70 on the turf and 76 on the all-weather and while I'm not saying those ratings were right he does go very well at Dundalk. He's a handy horse.”
Additional reporting by Gary Carson
