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Punchestown 2024
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- Weld and Hayes double up with Sidiriya
Michael Graham
Weld and Hayes double up with Sidiriya
Sidiriya forges on
© Photo Healy Racing
Dermot Weld and Chris Hayes doubled up in Galway when Sidiriya overcame an absence of 327 days in the concluding fillies' and mares' maiden.
On her sole previous start in October, she finished ninth in a Curragh maiden.
The 9/1 shot made good headway approaching the straight and got the better of a battle with Champagne racing into the final furlong.
The Nathaniel filly kept on well to post a victory by a length and a quarter. River Rain the 2/1 favourite, ran on for second from Champagne (14/1).
Weld said: "That's a nice double and we had a filly placed in the Stakes race as well (Azallya runner-up in Listed contest), which was important. She did it nicely, is a big mare and has got a nice future.
"She is still raw so I would hope for plenty improvement and I'd expect her to get black-type later in the year, in one of those 1m4f Listed races at Naas. I'll be encouraging connections to consider running her a four-year-old.
"She is filling into her big frame, stays really good, battles well and got a very good ride."
He added: "The horses have been hitting the crossbar all year and we were desperately unlucky with wide draws here at the summer meeting - we had six seconds from those.
"We had a couple of good horses like Homeless Songs and Duke De Sessa, but we knew coming into the year our three-year-olds were average. We have great patience, it's a long year and that's what we are maximising now."
Weld and Hayes were also successful with Keep In Touch in race four on the card.
Additional reporting by Tom Weekes