Yosemite Valley, driven by Donnacha O'Brien, fought bravely to win the Curragh's Lester Piggott Gladness Stakes.
The colt was making his fifth race at the track out of a total of seven, and he was well-versed in the sport, having placed second to Little Big Bear in the Anglesey Stakes as a juvenile.
This season, he made a different impression at Cork in Listed company, where he finished second.
The four-year-old was a 3-1 shot when he returned to the Curragh and was easily won by Gavin Ryan, crossing the finish line two and a half lengths ahead of 7-4 favourite Jumbly.
“It was a good performance. I always thought he was a proper horse but he was unlucky a few times,” said O’Brien. “He ran well in Cork the last day and the step up to seven seemed to suit him. It’s nice to get a stakes win for him. He could get away with a stiff six, but he travelled so well there today and all the big seven-furlong races will be open to him.”
About upcoming plans, the trainer said: “There is the Maurice de Gheest over six and a half in France. Whether he’s up to that level I don’t know but I’d like to give him a shot at it to see. The Greenlands is here in about a month but that is back to six. A stiff six could be an option or we might give him a little break and aim for seven furlongs in France.”