Trainer Norman Lee was literally bursting with pride and joy after his stablestar Sole Pretender bounced back from refusing to race at Tipperary last time to land the featured BoyleSports Handicap Chase in great style at Killarney.

The nine-year-old gelding was recording his tenth career win and defied the burden of topweight here in this 2m1f Listed event.

The easy-to-back 11/2 chance was produced to lead early in the straight by Robbie Geoghegan and took control before the last to beat The Little Yank by two and a half lengths.

The front-running The Dasher Conway finished a further three and a half lengths away in third.

Lee said, “That’s the best win since the day we started training. Lads have doubted our horse but he’s the best horse that we have ever had anything to do with.

“We were coming here today wondering would he take off. He burst a blood vessel in Galway last year and he’s thought about things a bit since.

“We were going for the Galway Plate with him and have decided to go to Galway on the Sunday for the Lord Hemphill Chase

“I’m very proud of him. He’s a very, very good horse when he goes and if he goes at Galway on the Sunday he won’t be beaten either! He’ll go for six months of a break then because he deserves it.

“Robbie gave him a great ride and works with us every day. We said we’d put up somebody that knows him after JJ Slevin had to go back to Kilbeggan.

“We’ve a small stable of 12 horses and are trying to build it up. This horse is like a Grade 1 horse to us and is an outstanding bit of stuff.

“He may be a shade off Grade 1 but he’s our Grade 1 horse and is a credit to his owner Michael Hogan. The day he tells us he doesn’t want to go we won’t force him as he means too much to us.”