Speak In Colours (left) winning the Weatherbys Ireland Greenland Stakes under Shane Crosse© Photo Healy Racing
Speak In Colours rsquo; record over six furlongs up the Curragh is now four wins and a second from five starts after he won the Weatherbys Ireland Greenland Stakes.
In a race where the 11/8 favourite Make A Challenge (sixth) didn’t pick up from two furlongs out, the winner (having his third run in a fortnight) travelled best at the head of affairs.
Shane Crosse didn’t really ask him for maximum effort until the furlong marker and, although not finding a huge amount when pushed along, his overall cruising speed had won him the race. Forever In Dreams and Buffer Zone closed late to be beaten a head and the same.
3lbs claimer Crosse had won a Group 3 on this horse last year, and this was a notable win at Group 2 level for the 18-year-old.
Winning trainer Joseph O'Brien (sixth winner at the three day meeting) said: "He’s a great consistent solid horse. He turns up every day and I thought Shane gave him a lovely ride.
"He’s not usually a horse that we go forward with, he always gets a lead, but we didn’t feel there was a huge amount of pace and he was able to control the race.
“You could argue that his best runs are all at six furlongs here. We left him in here after Ascot to see how he was and then decided to come here.
“It’s nice to win a Group 2 with him and we’ll be trying to win Group 1’s again. In the past he’s just been up to getting placed in them but we’ll try again.”
Betfair introduced Speak In Colours at 20/1 for the July Cup at Newmarket on Saturday week.
Additional reporting by Alan Magee
