Vastonea just beats Pintura with Custom Cut back in third© Photo Healy Racing
Kevin Prendergast landed his fifth renewal of the big extended mile handicap at the second stage of the Galway Festival, now run under the guise of the Topaz Mile European Breeders Fund Handicap.
English-raider Pintura and Custom Cut looked like they'd dominate the finish from before the straight but Vastonea showed great reserves of stamina inside the final furlong to get up and prevail by half a length.
Winning rider Declan McDonogh was donning the familiar Norman Ormiston silks on the grey son of Verglas and for the Meath man it was a second win in the valuable heat following on from Eklim in 2003.
Ormiston said: "We've had a few winners here before – it's been a very lucky place for us.
"We had a good winner here before in Imperial Brief.
"We've had a lean period recently but hopefully we can look forward to the rest of the year now.
"Kevin always believed in this horse – he had lots of problems when he was younger – but the trainer always said there was a big one in him." (TW & EM)
