Matron Stakes 'obvious next step' as Create Belief backs up Royal Ascot win

Create Belief is fast becoming one of Johnny Murtagh's favourite horses as the jaw-droppingly good Sandringham winner backed up her Royal Ascot victory with a cosy win in the Group 3 Desmond Stakes at Leopardstown.

Create Belief provided Murtagh with one of his biggest wins as a trainer at the royal meeting and breathed life into the prospects of taking out bigger and better targets with a half-length success.

Murtagh said: “We thought she had come out of Royal Ascot really well. This was a big step up and we wanted to see if she can run to a rating of 110. There wasn’t much pace in the race but Shane [Kelly] said he rode her like the best filly in the race. He said she quickened up and put the race to bed nicely. She idles a little bit and thinks she's done enough in front.

"We're delighted with that. We'll speak with Sheikh Fahad and the team now. She's in the Matron Stakes and that would look the obvious next step for her. People were talking about that good to yielding ground but if she couldn’t go on that then we were in trouble. That’s beautiful ground, on the slow side of good. She does handle extreme ground well but Shane said she handled that nicer ground very well.”

Johnny Murtagh: trainer of Create BeliefCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

Kelly was deputising for the suspended Ben Coen, who had partnered Create Belief on her previous starts, but Murtagh would not look beyond his number two on the big day.

He said: “I’m delighted for Shane. He came to me at the beginning of the season and asked where he fits in. I said to him he was the second jockey. Shane has stepped into a couple of big pressure rides and I have faith in him. He has been around a long time now and has served his time in the yard. He has never let me down.

"I’ve a lot of jockeys there and, if I’m not looking after them, I’d be riding them all out myself. They get the job done."

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