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Punchestown 2024
Punchestown 2024
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- Santo swoops for cosy win
Gary Carson
Santo swoops for cosy win
Santo Prince (red and yellow) comes with his run
© Photo Healy Racing
Santo Prince bounced back to form returning to the level when claiming the Boolavogue Handicap at Wexford.
Robbie Hennessy 's charge was beaten a long way when last on his most recent outing, over timber at Galway, but left that run well behind.
Seamie Heffernan produced him wide in the straight and he quickened up well inside the final furlong to record a cosy two-and-a-half length victory at odds of 16/1.
10/3 favourite High Kicker made the running but faded in the straight to finish fourth.
"That was good. It is the owner's (Tony Kelly) first winner. I told him to come down today and to bring the kids and the whole lot as I thought he would run well," said Hennessy.
"The last time we ran him on the flat he was second and the last couple of days he had been working well at home.
"He has a few niggly problems but we have been doing a lot of training out of the field with him and it seems to have sweetened him up.
"I'm just delighted for Tony to have his first winner, he is from Ratoath and is a neighbour of mine.
"After Galway the horse didn't run great and he was losing a bit of heart but I told him to just stick with it and he'll win.
"Gordon Elliott had him last year and he was in England before that on the flat, I have him about year now.
"He is again Thursday at Clonmel in a handicap hurdle and he might run there, we will see how he comes out of this. If not there is a two mile race at Dundalk next weekend, it will be one or the other."
(Additional reporting by Donal Murphy)