There was huge excitement in The Curragh on Friday night as a horse with double Laois connections won at odds of 100/1.
Red Letter Bray, making his first appearance of the season, stunned everyone by winning the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Habitat Handicap.
The horse is trained by Mountrath’s Liam Cusack and only recently switched to his stable.
While the horse is owned by former Laois and current Trumera hurler Cathal Brophy.
In the race itself, the 100/1 chance was soon in front but it looked like it would be second when he was headed by Little Queenie approaching the final furlong.
The New Bay gelding was not to be denied, though, and rallied well to thwart that rival by a neck and take the €30,000 first prize.
Indeed it was an evening of firsts as the jockey, Leigh Roche, who is a friend of Cathal Brophy, scored his maiden win of the season.
Speaking to IrishRacing.com afterwards, Roche said that he was having such bad luck before this race that if he had ducks, ‘they all would drown’.
He said: “If I had ducks they’d drown at this stage! I was going terrible, I got beaten earlier today and I said ‘is there anything I can do to change it?’
“Cathal Brophy that owns him is a very good friend of mine and he bought him last year.
“Michael O’Callaghan bought him at the breeze-ups last year and he won two on the bounce in Naas early on. He had a few little niggly problems but we got them sorted.
“I thought he’d need the run today. The plan was to drop in but he hit the lids. He was good and tough, he took a blow and went away again at the line. He’s improving and he’s not a bad horse.
“We went along a good gallop and after a furlong I said I’m going to get shot, he’s going to eat me alive when I go in.
“Luckily the horse was good and tough and got me out of trouble.
“We had him up the Curragh twice before today. I said he was fit and to go and run him, he’ll improve from the run and then we can make a plan from there on — just get a run into him.
“He’s one to get a good pot out of. I’d say the last Flat winner Liam had I rode for him down in Galway, Bog War. That’s a good few years ago and it’s great to get one again.”
Check out the finish from the race below:
100/1 winner! 🤩
Outsider Red Letter Bray wins on his first start for new connections, showing great tenacity under @LeighRoche1992 for Liam Cusack 💥@IrishEBF_ | @curraghrace pic.twitter.com/qWQIlOjAiA
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) May 24, 2024
