Weld off to a flyer with Imperial Concorde

In-form Dermot Weld made a successful start with his juvenile class of 2012 when Imperial Concorde, his first two-year-old runner of the season, made all to land the opening Irish Stallion Farms Maiden at Gowran Park last evening.

It was Weld’s third consecutive win, and his fifth in eight years, in this event, traditionally the season’s first seven-furlong event for juveniles.

Imperial Concorde, backed into 4/5 favouritism, made every yard of the running under Pat Smullen and, having looked in command at the furlong pole, had to knuckle down, when apparently tiring, to hold Einsteins Folly by a head.