Indian Run (15/2) took the step up the Group company in his stride when running out a ready winner of the Group 3 Acomb Stakes at York.
Eve Johnson-Houghton's runner always looked to be travelling kindly under a confident-looking Danny Tudhope and the son of Sioux Nation eased to the front entering the final two furlongs. Tudhope asked his mount to stretch, and he quickly put the race to bed with a smart turn of foot.
The Adrian Keatley-trained Ballymount Boy, who was really purchased by Wathnan Racing, looked uneasy on the ground from an early stage but the 11-4 joint-favourite stayed on well to finish runner-up.
Johnson-Houghton said: "That was very exciting and I'm really happy,"
"What was pleasing was that his strongest furlong was his last because he had a really bad trip all the way, trapped on the outside with no cover – but he just found and found and found which is very exciting.
"This ground is perfect Flat racing ground, thank God. We are allowed to have fast ground. This is an appeal to all courses 'it might rain – do not water'!
"He's in the Dewhurst so we'll probably look there. He's so unfurnished he needs time, so we'll give him a nice break until then, I imagine.
"Last year's winner won the Guineas, so shall we dream?"
Paddy Power cut the winner to 12/1 from 16/1 for the Dewhurst at Newmarket next month.
Adrian Keatley, trainer of the second-placed horse, said: "We're happy with how he ran. He's handled the ground; he's had a long season having come from the breeze-ups and we're confident that at the back end, he'll handle softer ground.
"He's a big fellow. He went on that soft ground at Goodwood and at least we know he handles that quicker ground today.
"We definitely wouldn't be losing any faith – we think we have a very nice horse on our hands.
"We'll back off him for a few weeks and have a look at something at the back end, an Autumn Stakes [at Newmarket] or something like that."
