Tavern triumphs for third trainer

Ajax Tavern completed an unusual feat at Dundalk this evening, completing a hat-trick of wins trained by three different trainers, in the concluding Join On Instagram @dundalk_stadium Handicap.

Trainer Denis Hogan bought Ajax Tavern for 5,000gns from English trainer Michael Scudamore last October, and having won a December Claimer for Hogan, was subsequently claimed for €8,000 by trainer Ger O'Leary.

The son of Canford Cliffs won another Claimer, for O'Leary, on January 5 after which he was claimed for €15,000 by James McAuley, and today completed a treble for his latest owner/trainer, when making all to win under jockey Sam Ewing.

McAuley later stated “he beat two of mine in claimers so if he’s going to keep beating you in claimers, you might as well take him and have him on your team!

“We’ve just given him a couple of breezes to keep him fresh and he showed plenty of boot so we said we’d take a chance and see if he could drop back to six (furlongs). I’m pleasantly surprised.

“He got 7lb for the first claimer and another 7lb for the last one so the handicapper obviously rated him. We’ll keep him busy like the rest of them now.”

Quotes from Alan Magee