Donnacha O’Brien passes Saval Beg exam

Kingfisher put himself firmly in the Ascot Gold Cup picture when getting up late in the day to take the Seamus & Rosemary McGrath Memorial Saval Beg Stakes at Leopardstown last night.

Settled towards the rear through the early stages by 16-year-old Donnacha O’Brien, the 4-1 chance – sporting a hood for the first time – had plenty of ground to make up when favourite Panama Hat asserted inside the quarter-mile pole.

But the Aidan O’Brien-trained colt found a gap off the rail and while victory still looked unlikely with 200 yards to run, last year’s Irish Derby runner-up came out on top by what in the end looked quite a cosy half a length. RaceBets gave Kingfisher a 14-1 from 25-1 quote for the Ascot showpiece.