Alan Magee
Rendezvous completes near 20/1 Mullins treble
Royal Rendezvous (Patrick Mullins) beating Kalum River in the bumper
© Photo Healy Racing
Willie Mullins completed a treble on the day at Tipperary as Royal Rendezvous landed the odds in the Kenyon Street Traders Flat Race.
Patrick Mullins elected to keep things simple by making all on the 2/5 favourite, and he was looking around for non-existent dangers early in the straight.
The point-to-point winner, who also landed a Downpatrick bumper in runaway fashion last time, was ridden out inside the final furlong to score by four and a quarter lengths.
Chief market rival Kalum River was no match for the winner in second, with Killacolla and Mason Jar dead-heating for third a further nine lengths back.
Mullins was on the mark earlier in the afternoon with the well-backed Micro Manage (11/2) in the juvenile maiden and also 5/4 favourite Quick Grabim in the Grade 3 Joe Mac Novice Hurdle.
Patrick Mullins said, "We were very disappointed in Galway when he just ran a bit keen and the atmosphere probably got to him a bit too. We put the hood on him and it has helped him to relax.
"Sometimes horses that work so well at home need their first run back but I think he is a horse with a high cruising speed and I hope to get a third bumper out of him. He could also go jumping so we'll have to sit down and argue that one!
"Last season he had a setback when he had been doing good work but is back now and he has stood up to three runs. They have done a fantastic job with the ground here and deserve an awful lot of credit."
(TW & AM)