Hellenistic, left, in winning action© Photo Healy Racing
While all eyes were focused on the battle up front involving Punch Bag and Gold Necklace Hellenistic timed her challenge to perfection on the inside of the pair as she got up by a short head in Limerick.
She needed every yard of this one mile three furlongs and 70 yards trip as she rewarded her backers in this handicap at 9/2. This gave Dermot Weld and Pat Smullen a double on the afternoon.
Punch Bag was the horse nailed on the line at 16/1 and Gold Necklace (7/1) took third. Well-backed favourite Alafzara finished out of the places in fourth at 7/2. She had been taken at 11/2 in the morning and 9/2 on opening show in the ring.
Jockey Pat Smullen said: “It took a while for the penny to drop. She’s still a bit green and she only got going late on. It’s our first winner for Calumet Farm [owners] and it was good to get it.”
Hellenistic’s other four racecourse appearances all came at Dundalk where she achieved three third-placed finishes.
Additional reporting by Thomas Weekes
