'She was very professional' - Agartha back to form after Belmont Oaks flop

Friday: Tipperary

A rare poor run in the Belmont Oaks might have raised some doubts about the credentials of Agartha, but the Joseph O'Brien-trained filly brushed those aside with a commanding performance in the feature Group 3 Coolmore-sponsored Fairy Bridge Stakes.

She hit the gates smartly and Declan McDonogh was able to dictate from there, before she pulled out plenty in the straight without having to hit top gear in beating stablemate Night Of Romance by a length.

McDonogh said: "She was very professional and deserved to get her head in front. The style of training in America might not have suited her, but since she came back I sat on her a couple of times and felt she was really working well again.

"That will be a nice confidence booster for her and maybe she might go to the Matron Stakes. She loves Leopardstown and never runs a bad race there."

O'Briens dominant

The first four races on the card were all won by the O'Brien family. Aidan landed the two-year-old fillies' maiden with Library, but it was his son Donnacha who grabbed most of the headlines with a double.

Paddy Harnett made most of the running to win the opening juvenile claimer on Blindsided, but the winner to give the youngest of the O'Briens in the training ranks most pleasure was Emporio in the 7½f rated race.

The son of Zoffany, owned by his mother Anne-Marie, had been off the track since winning a Curragh maiden in June last year, not long after finishing fifth in the Irish 2,000 Guineas. He made light of that under Gavin Ryan though, winning readily from Alessandro Alghardi.

"He has had plenty of issues but is a horse we were happy to wait on," said O'Brien.

"He had a good blow in the last furlong. He has a lot of ability. He's in the English Cambridgeshire, so we might have a look at that."

Nicholls winner

The Adrian Nicholls-trained Tees Spirit, ridden by Barry McHugh, won the Listed Abergwaun Stakes by a nose from 5-2 favourite Erosandpsyche.

Results, replays and analysis

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