Moore lands the feature with Hat

Arthur Moore is considering a tilt at the Irish National with Pass The Hat after the gelding took the featured Carrickmines Handicap Chase at Leopardstown this afternoon.

The Karinga Bay gelding certainly didn’t go unnoticed in the betting for this €50,000 event being available at 10/1 this morning, and supported from 7/1 into 6/1 on track.

Last year’s winner He’llberemembered, who got back into contention following a blunder just after halfway, jumped the last together with Kylecrue and Pass The Hat.

However the latter two soon took control on the run-in and it was Pass The Hat who proved the stronger under pressure to score by a length, the pair pulling eight and a half lengths clear.

Moore said, “I’m delighted with that. He had a lovely weight in the race and Robbie gave him a lovely ride. I shouldn’t have run him in Limerick but I wasn’t down there myself and, if I’d known the ground was that bad, I’d have pulled the plug. He came back well and he proved he gets the trip today.

“It’s hard to get into an Irish National but if he got into it we’d have to think about it. If he doesn’t there is a novice handicap chase at Punchestown the following week which would look an obvious race.

“He doesn’t have to run in between as he hasn’t run since Christmas and he’s come here in great form. They are super owners who have been with me all the way and I’m delighted to repay them with a good win.

Grand National entry Home Farm (9/2fav) finished seventh, and Moore commented, “He was a little disappointing. I thought after jumping three out he would take all the beating but he didn’t come home. He may just have needed the race and I may have just been a shade easy on him.

“We are in the happy position that we also have the Irish National and it takes all the pressure off. I was hoping he would be in the first three and then we’d be definitely going (to Aintree). We won’t right it off just yet but he’s only seven and there is no panic with him.”

Additional reporting by Gary Carson