D'or opens for Grassick's Gazelle in Curragh finale On an afternoon where it certainly paid to be drawn amongst the high numbers on the sprint track, Gazelle D'or followed the tried and tested route to success in the concluding Download The Tote App Handicap at the Curragh. A dual winner last season, the three-year-old made the perfect start to the new campaign when getting up in the dying strides to beat Rathbranchurch a nose. A whole host of runners were in contention at the furlong pole but being drawn highest of all appeared to benefit the winner as she gradually wore down the eventual second to record the narrowest of victories. “She likes a tight finish!” said Grassick. “I don’t like running three-year-olds against older horses so early in the season but she was a hardened two-year-old, with plenty of runs, and I thought it was worth a shot with the 12lb and Jack’s 5lb. “She’s a gas one, she got there easy and then she doesn’t do too much when she hits the front. Hopefully she’s open to improvement. “We’ll probably find a similar type of race and then see how far she can improve. “We don’t have too many, we only have 13 riding out, so it’s nice to get one on the board and especially at the Curragh.” Additional reporting by Gary Carson.
