The Grey Gatsby© Photo Healy Racing
The Grey Gatsby has his second start for Dermot Weld in the ICON Meld Stakes at Leopardstown.
Winner of the French Derby and Irish Champion Stakes for Kevin Ryan in 2014, the six-year-old has not won since and is wearing a visor for the first time on Thursday evening.
He made a satisfactory first outing for Weld when fourth behind Johannes Vermeer in a Group Three at the Curragh earlier this month and jockey Pat Smullen expects him to take a step forward.
"He ran a good race the last day, we felt. He travelled into the race nicely and just got a bit tired in the closing stages, as he was entitled to with it being his first run for a while," said Smullen.
"You'd hope he'd improve a good bit for that and he should be there or thereabouts I think.
"He's wearing a visor for the first time. That's not to suggest he's ungenuine or anything at all, it's just that he's a six-year-old entire and at this stage of his life, they might just help him concentrate his mind that little bit more, keep his mind on the job.
"If he recaptures anything like his old form, you'd like to think he might be hard to beat."
Aidan O'Brien runs Deauville a Grade One winner in America and a fine third to Ribchester in the Queen Anne at Royal Ascot last time out.
Ger Lyons is doubly represented by the admirable Brendan Brackan and Tennessee Wildcat and Jim Bolger's Moonlight Magic completes the five-runner field.
