Billy Lee produces Rockingham masterclass with Amazon Lady

Gary Carson
June 30, 2024 2:38 pm

Decision to race on far rail is rewarded in style.

An enterprising ride from Billy Lee paid dividends in the Dubai Duty Free Rockingham Handicap, as Amazon Lady came home in splendid isolation at the Curragh.

Keen to take advantage of fresh ground on the far rail, Lee headed right when leaving stall one as the remainder of the field raced as a cluster on the stands side.

Racing on her own throughout, it was a roll of the dice which proved well worth taking as Willie McCreery’s 22-1 shot had enough in reserve in the closing stages to finish one and a half lengths clear of the rest.

“She was drawn one and there was six metres of fresh ground for the Derby horses, so it would be fresh for the last three furlongs so I said to get over to that,” said McCreery.

“She doesn’t mind racing on her own, she won in Navan the last day on her own. Billy has a good clock in his head and got her into a lovely rhythm. She broke from the gates and was gone, she didn’t see anything.

“She’s improving every race, but unfortunately the breeder decided to put in her foal!

“She’s in foal to New Bay and might have one more run in the Sweet Mimosa (Naas, July 24) before going home.”

The opening Paddy Power “From The Horse’s Mouth Podcast” Handicap went the way of Michael Halford and Tracey Collins’ 2-1 favourite Sharinay.

Making just his fourth career appearance, the Aga Khan-owned son of Harzand came through nicely at the finish to see off Karl Burke’s well-regarded Arabic Legend.

“The form of the last race worked out really well and he’s a progressive horse, a typical Aga Khan horse that’s getting better with racing,” said Halford.

“He has a great mind, he’s a good sound horse and just keeps improving. The step up in trip, they generally stay well, but the thing with him is he had a lot of pace for a Harzand. He is getting better with the trip.

“We’ll step things up now, I have him entered in the Meld Stakes, he’ll even go another furlong in time if we need to. We’ll take gradual steps. Ronan is riding great, he is a very underestimated rider. He rides our horses really well.”