West Cork, IE – Rhyds Destiny and driver Timmy O'Leary were worthy winners of the 2019 Murphys/Hurley & White Grand Prix at a wet Ballabuidhe on bank holiday Monday.
Four elimination heats were held with two qualifiers from each heat.
In the opening heat Gamblers Gold a winner on his previous two starts tried to make all the running but was collared on the run in by IB A Magician.
In the second heat Just a promise led for most of the testing trip but Fairdays Bret made a race winning move with two furlongs to go and ran out an easy winner.
The third heat was settled in the stewards room .Hail Spartacus passed the post first but was found to have interfered with the runner up Coalford Bruce and the placings were reversed.
In the concluding heat Rhyds Destiny was all the rage in the betting and never gave his supporters any anxious moments and ran out to a four length winning marginIn the final punters again latched on to Rhyds Destiny despite a thirty yard handicap.
Fairdays Bret and Coalford Bruce were the pace setters on a track that was now running very heavy. Rhyds Destiny was slowly bringing down the handicap and Timmy O Leary made his move with four furlongs to pace and was not for catching winning by four lengths from IB A Magician with King Wills Arrival third .
The winner is owned by John Shanahan and UK dairy farmer John Mycock from Derby.
Shanahan and driver O'Leary had four winners on the day with American Rebel joining Rhyds Destiny heat and final and Coalford Bruce another heat winner in the winners circle.
O'Leary completed a five timer of wins when landing the maiden aboard Moorside Myra who has shown promise and got her day in the Sun today.
The other feature was The Paddy Connolly Memorial for trotters and here it was Silvano Bello and Donal Murphy who made all the running to win from Batman Du Relais with Vallanzanna back in third. Silvano Bello a former winner of The Maven Trot added another notch to his impressive CV.
In the consolation final for pacers John Boyle at 76 years of age steered home his own mare Supreme Sunshine to beat recent Red John Memorial winner Rhyds Panache while in the tro consolation Banialouka who hated the going on Sunday made amends when winning easy from Brutenor and Tarnao Josselyn.
by Tim Kelleher, for Harnesslink
RESULTS
Grand Prix final
1.Rhyds Destiny T O'Leary
2.IB A Magician D Murphy
3.King Wills Arrival O Quill
DIST 4L 1L 7 Ran
Grand Prix
Heat winners
IB A Magician D Murphy
Fairdays Bret A McCarthy
Coalford Bruce T O'Leary
RhydsDestiny T O'Leary
Paddy Connolly Memorial Final
1.Silvano Bello D Murphy
2.Batman Du Relais S Quill
3.Vallanzanna O Quill
DIST 3L 1L 5 Ran
Consolation Grand Prix
1.Supreme Sunshine J Boyle
2.Rhyds Panache C O'Reilly
3.Sunnyside Kildare D Murphy
DIST 2L 2L 4 Ran
Consolation Trot
1.Banialouka K Sheehy
2.Brutenor P Hill
3.Tarnao Josselyn S Quill
DIST 4L 2L 7 Ran
Maiden Pace
1.Moorside Myra T O'Leary
2.Talented Girl S Jennings Jnr
3.The Red Rebel M Goggin Snr
DIST 3L 2L 6 ran
Grade G1 Pace
1.American Rebel T O'Leary
2.Moorside Captain J O Mahony
3.Brywins One Off M Goggin Snr
DIST 12L 12L 4 ran