Cougar Mountain comes home in front under Joseph O'Brien© Photo Healy Racing
Cougar Mountain for Aidan and Joseph O’Brien, got off the mark on his debut as he ran out an easy winner of the New BBQ Format At Naas 3yo Maiden over six furlongs.
The son of Fastnet Rock was due to make his debut at the Curragh in March of 2013 but was taken out due to a stone bruise.
Sent off the 8/11 favourite this evening he raced on the outer and was settled in fourth.
He was pushed along over two furlongs out but once Joseph O’Brien got serious he hit the front a furlong and a half from home, soon going clear to score easily by five and a half lengths. Monsieur Power finished second at 5/2 under Colm O’Donoghue for Eddie Lynam, while the Dermot Weld trained newcomer Intisaab was a further four and a half lengths back in third.
Joseph O’Brien said afterwards: "He's a horse we've always really liked for fast ground.
"We always thought he'd have no problem with five, six or seven and he might get a mile.
"We thought last year he was our best two-year-old and he has a chance of being a Group One horse.
"He was quite green. I gave him a slap down the shoulder and got there too soon so I had to stay going and pushed him out hands and heels.
"It's always frustrating when you have a good one at home standing in a box. He never had any major problems but when he got near a run he had little setbacks.
"He was coughing for a while and had a stone-bruise as a two-year-old that took him a while to get over.
"In the second half of last year we said we'd have him for next year and we hoped to have him out earlier than we did.
"I think he could be a very good horse, whether that's a sprinter or a miler I don't know.
"He's going to improve an awful lot from here. He's only been outside Ballydoyle once when he went to the Curragh two weeks ago for a canter."
The winner holds entries in the both the July Cup and the Sussex Stakes (both Group 1’s) while he is also entered in the Minstrel Stakes and the Meld Stakes (both Group 3’s and both at the Curragh next month).
Additional reporting by Gary Carson
