Onenightidreamed eventually wore down the boldly-ridden Aussie Valentine to scoop the big pot in the Tote Irish Lincolnshire at the Curragh.
The Tommy Stack-trained Onenightidreamed was among the leading contenders for the €100,000 feature under Wayne Lordan, making his first appearance since finishing third in a similarly competitive handicap at the track last May.
Aussie Valentine was one of three to break rank from the home turn, with Silvestre de Sousa bagging the stands’ rail, while Queen Of Alba raced up the centre of the track and Canary Row galloped alone up the far side.
Queen Of Alba and Canary Row eventually gave way as the chasing pack closed up, but Aussie Valentine kept up the gallop and it was not until deep inside the final furlong that he was claimed by Stack’s 8-1 shot, who got up by a length.
That pair finished nicely clear of Third Dimension, with Queen Of Alba boxing on for fourth.