Hard Promises too good for the opposition The 91-rated Hard Promises got off the mark on his third start in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden over an extended nine-furlongs at Leopardstown. Andy Oliver's charge posted solid third places on debut at Cork, and then at Navan behind horses rated 100 and 98 respectively. From fourth racing into the home bend, Ben Coen got busy in the saddle on the 5/4 favourite and the Pinatubo colt responded well to take over just outside the final furlong. He was notably strong in the closing stages as he rolled home by two and three quarter lengths from a staying-on Handani (7/2). Let's Smash It rounded out the placings in third at 10/1. Oliver said: "He is a very nice horse, we waited on him. "We ran him at Navan just because of opportunities. We were pitching him in against that company, but we were hoping he'd run a nice race and he did. He took a blow and came on from that race. It was a nice run and that left him with the form to come here. "You still have it to do, but he did it very nicely - it was a bloodless victory. Ben gave him a lovely ride. It was nice to see. "He's from a good, deep pedigree. He's bred to be a progressive horse. He's showing us that at home and he is very relaxed. He just eats and sleeps. Even training him at home, you can switch him off. He just does nothing. "He's a horse that at the beginning he was just part of the crew but then, once you woke him up, you saw that he could do. He's a nice horse to train because of that. He just goes through the motions until you ask him to pick up. "We'll take it from here. We have no plans yet, but I think we are fairly versatile with regard to ground and trip." Additional reporting by John O'Riordan
