Murtagh's filly clear favourite for Leopardstown feature Royal Ascot heroine Create Belief tests Group-race waters for the first time in the Invesco Pension Consultants Desmond Stakes at Leopardstown. Johnny Murtagh’s filly claimed her third victory from four starts this season with a dominant display in the Sandringham Stakes at the showpiece meeting in June. The daughter of Awtaad faces a step up in class for Thursday’s Group Three feature, but Murtagh is relishing the challenge. He said: “She’s in good form. We’ve just been waiting for the ground and we’re looking to getting her out now. “We’ll see how she copes with Group company. She’s rated 110 now, so she has to go into this sort of league and we’ll find out if she’s up to it. “The ground in Leopardstown is on the easy side and there’s plenty of rain around, so let’s hope the rain comes.” The going this morning is good to yielding after 1mm of rain yesterday with a generally dry day forecast. Create Belief is the highest-rated of nine runners declared for the one-mile contest and is generally priced around 1/1 this morning. Course winner Military Style is an interesting contender for Aidan O’Brien on what is his first competitive appearance since finishing down the field in the Group One National Stakes at the Curragh in September. The Jessica Harrington-trained Real Appeal bids for back-to-back Group Three wins at Leopardstown after landing the Ballycorus Stakes in June, but must concede weight all round. Jim Bolger’s Flying Visit and Neptune Rock from Joseph O’Brien’s yard also feature.
