Last to first for Booyea in Fairyhouse Rated Race

The Tom Gibney trained Booyea made a winning reappearance when coming from last to first in the home straight to land the Pat's Carpets Race at Fairyhouse.

Despite being sent off the 9/2 outsider of the quarter here, the Robert Whearty ridden gelding belied those odds with a comfortable length-and-a-half success.

With a rating of 79, the Galileo Gold four-year-old had plenty to do at the weights but proved himself to be well treated in the circumstances.

Held up last of the four runners for the early part of the race, Booyea was produced with a challenge down the outside over a furlong out, eventually heading leader Gleneagle Bay before keeping on strongly. Democracy sent off 6/4f, was the unlucky horse in the contest, trapped in a pocket on the rail before running on all too late.

Tom Gibney said: “The plan was to go to Limerick last week but he had a bit of an issue and couldn’t run. I was very keen to run before we went to the Curragh on Derby weekend and there weren’t any suitable races for him so I said to the lads we’d stick him into this.

“We are thinking of dropping back in trip to a mile at the Curragh anyway so I said we could give him a bit of a sharpener at Fairyhouse and see how that goes.

“The race may have worked out a bit farcical as they looked to go steady, and I don’t think the mile is going to be a problem anyway! We’re surprised and delighted with the horse.”