Boundless Ocean opened up a route to the Irish 2,000 Guineas after shedding his maiden tag in race two at Leopardstown.

The 99-rated colt was pipped in two maidens, including one on seasonal reappearance at the Curragh last month, and ran a close fourth and fifth in a pair of Group 3s.

The 5/4 favourite moved up to 10 furlongs and was a shade keen in tracking Temple Of Artemis in second.

The son of Teofilo travelled well turning for home, though, and came through to head a pushed-along Temple Of Artemis a furlong and a half down.

He was soon ridden by Kevin Manning and began to increase his lead over a staying-on Flying Dolphin (25/1) in the final furlong.

The runner-up kept bridging the gap but was three parts of a length in arrears at the line. Temple Of Artemis completed the placings in third at 8/1, beaten two lengths by the winner.

Una Manning said: "The boss (Jim Bolger) is absolutely delighted with him and the target now will be the Irish Guineas. He probably just needed the run the last day.”

Additional reporting by Gary Carson