Real Appeal overcame an absence of over seven months when taking the KE Builders Race in decisive fashion at Dundalk.

The classy gelding reached a career high mark of 112 after winning the Group 2 Boomerang Mile at Leopardstown in 2021 and joined Ado McGuinness for €130,000 the following year.

The son of Sidestep won here early last year and was Group 3 placed at Leopardstown last summer. Freescape set a steady pace in this mile event and Real Appeal travelled well to head the front-runner a furlong out.

The 5/1 chance was ridden out by Ronan Whelan to beat that rival by three quarters of a length with the winner’s stablemate Hodd’s Girl nearly three lengths further back in third.

McGuinness said, "He chipped a bone in a knee earlier on in the year and we had to give him time off. Ger Kelly down in Fethard did a great job with him.

"You're scratching your head saying 'will he come back or will he not?' Fair play to the horse, class is permanent.

"We were hoping to take this horse to Doha, that was the plan to go back again, and we couldn't because he was injured.

"This will make up for it and we will find something for him. He needs good ground, so we said we would come here. We'll see what way the ground is and we will take it from there after that."

Quotes by Michael Graham