Trainer Peter Fahey celebrated a fourth winner of the week when Ambitious Fellow and Sam Ewing collected the spoils in the feature BoyleSports Handicap Hurdle on day six of the Galway Festival.
Sixteen went to post for the 2m6½f Listed contest, featuring a first prize of €64,900, but only seven completed the course in testing conditions. Ambitious Fellow was settled towards the rear for much of the journey, before his rider made a daring move up the inner approaching the second last.
Sam Ewing's manouevre thrust Ambitious Fellow into contention, allowing him to jump the last upsides Bugs Moran, before outlasting that rival by three-quarters of a length on the run-in.
The winning trainer told Racing TV: "Sam made a good move to nip up the inner before coming down the hill and it could have been the winning and losing of it. It was a brave move but it worked out great. (This horse) lost his form a little bit but had an issue after he ran at Limerick last year and it took him a while to get back right."
He continued: "There are four involved in the OGB Partnership including Ber (his wife) and after he won a bumper, we brought him to the sales but couldn't get anyone to buy him. We brought him home and he has now won at the Punchestown Festival and has landed a big pot today."
Reflecting on a week that had already seen him win with A Law Of Her Own, The Big Doyen and A Sign From Above, Fahey added: "We had four winners last year, we've had good old craic again and it has been brilliant."
Sam Ewing is just one behind Fahey in terms of successes this week, and recurrent winners were something of a theme of the day.
Claiming sensation Danny Gilligan added to his wins on Neveradullmoment on Monday and Ash Tree Meadow in the Plate, by steering 'Shark' Hanlon's Enfranchise to an eleven-length success in the opening maiden hurdle. The five-year-old daughter of Invincible Spirit won the Ulster Oaks on the Flat in June and has the makings of a high-class dual-purpose performer.
Dylan Browne McMonagle heads the race to be crowned leading Flat rider and added to his three earlier winners with success on the Ciaran Murphy-trained Dragon Pulse gelding Bottler'secret in the 1m½f maiden. Colin Keane is one of several snapping at McMonagle's heels, and he added to his own collection of Festival wins when guiding Dragon Of Malta– also by Dragon Pulse - to a comfortable success in the 7f handicap for trainer Pat O'Donnell.
Amateur jockey Ray Barron secured the most memorable win of his career when taking the Connacht Hotel Handicap aboard Teed Up on Monday, and once again demonstrated impeccable timing to swoop late in the concluding bumper on the well-backed Fortunate Lighting for Charles Byrnes.
Aidan O'Brien has had limited representation at Galway this year, the lion's share of his attention no doubt directed towards Paddington's successful Sussex Stakes bid on Wednesday. However, the Master of Ballydoyle sent two Dubawi colts to the track yesterday and was rewarded with a double.
Navy Seal looked green on the turn for home but ultimately ran out a comfortable winner of the 1m½f maiden on his second start, and just over an hour later Portland won the 7f nursery. Both were ridden by Seamie Heffernan.
