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Punchestown 2024
Punchestown 2024
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- Johnston and Dettori warm up with Lord success
Johnston and Dettori warm up with Lord success
Mark Johnston and Frankie Dettori teamed up ahead of Monterosso s run in the Derby to take the Dubai Duty Free Double Millionaire Handicap with Sea Lord
The Cape Cross colt made all in the mile event and kept on strongly in the closing stages to score by a length-and-a-quarter. Scandal Sheet came through in the final furlong to chase home the winner while Super Say won a bunch finish for third spot.
Derby hope Monterosso came to the Curragh after winning at Royal Ascot while Sea Lord had finished eighth in the Britannia Stakes .
"We were joking before that this was a practice run to see if it was not too soon to bring a horse here from Royal Ascot," said Johnston.
"But it's a different level of racing and a different class of horse. I was keen to run again with this horse as he didn't really get a run at Ascot.
"He got boxed in and only got out two furlongs from home so he didn't get a hard race.
"Probably if we hadn't been running Monterosso we wouldn't have brought him. Bu it's good for Frankie to get a ride before the big one."