Caravation (Luke Dempsey) winning the mares maiden hurdle© Photo Healy Racing
Caravation was all the rage for the Coral Double Your Cheltenham Winnings First Race Every Day Mares Maiden Hurdle at Navan and duly justified the confidence in convincing fashion.
Trained by Philip Dempsey and ridden by his son Luke, the daughter of Presenting was supported from evens earlier in the day to go off the 4/7 favourite.
The Naas bumper winner made all the running in this two-mile event, and was never seriously threatened in the straight as she galloping on strongly to score by six lengths. Great White Shark could make no impression from the penultimate flight, while Stormy Tale was a further ten lengths adrift in third.
Dempsey said, “That was great. She's a decent mare and I was delighted with that. We've had an awful lot of seconds since Christmas and we just needed to get a winner before Cheltenham.
“I'd say he didn't go quick enough on her the last day and today she was very good. Maybe she's a little bit better going left-handed. It's hard to say as she only went once right-handed and won her point-to-point right-handed.
“He made it a good solid gallop today and she jumped well. She'll be a lovely mare to go chasing with down the road.
“I'm sure with William (Flood) and where she comes from he'll want a bit of black-type for her and I'm sure she'll try for that. She might have a break. She's a full-sister to Niche Market, the Irish National winner. He made it a good solid test today and that's what she wants.
“I'd say she might have been a bit fed-up running on good ground. She won her point-to-point in very heavy ground and we were just waiting a bit after Fairyhouse as it's very unusual ground. Today is probably the first day that there are actually getting their toe in.”
(GC & AM)
