O'Brien's long trek north for testing ground pays off handsomely

It's not cheap sending a horsebox on the 642-mile round trip from Naunton in Gloucestershire to Ayr, but the seeds of an idea sown in Fergal O'Brien's mind when last month's Gold Cup meeting was abandoned came to fruition in splendid fashion when Global Stage and Socksy completed a short-priced double.

O'Brien, taking his record at the track to four winners from only eight runners in the last five seasons, explained: "When Ayr's Gold Cup meeting was abandoned I said to my partner Sally that if they had a lot more rain up there these two horses would be ideal.

"It's not cheap to get there, but all credit to the owners, who were happy to give it a go."