Tuesday 25 April 2017 19:22, UK
The Noel Meade-trained Disko (13/8 favourite) stormed to a ready success in Punchestown's Grade One Growise Champion Novice Chase.
The grey gelding was scoring at the highest level for the second time this season after taking the Flogas Novice Chase at Leopardstown in February, after which he finished third to Yorkhill in the JLT at Cheltenham.
Freshened up following a 40-day break, Disko returned to action with a five-length victory over well-backed 3/1 chance Anibale Fly.
The winner hit the front two fences from the finish and quickly put the race to bed under Bryan Cooper, who simply had to keep his mount up to his work over the final obstacle to run out an impressive winner from Tony Martin's runner-up.
Meade said: "I've always loved him and he's been the apple of my eye for a long time.
"Mags (O'Toole) and Eddie (O'Leary) found him in a small yard in France. He's never stopped developing since we got him and we've always thought he was very good.
"We had one or two setbacks but very little and most things he'd done well. It does appear that good ground suits him really well.
"Even thinking back to Leopardstown his good runs were there and I suppose when he ran in Cheltenham he ran against one of the best horses we've seen for quite a while in Yorkhill.
"You'd always hope he'd win like that, but you couldn't imagine he'd win as easy as that - he won very well. I thought he'd win as he was sparkling last week when we worked him.
"He didn't come out of Cheltenham that well. We did think about running him in the Ryanair Gold Cup at Fairyhouse but we did a piece of work with him and thought that he needed another bit.
"Road To Respect went to the race at Fairyhouse and it all worked out very well."
He added: "We've had a great season and will be kind of sorry to see the end of it in a way. We've got some lovely horses. Gigginstown have been very good to us with the horses they've sent to us. It's easier to train good ones than bad ones.
"I never really doubted he would stay the trip. Probably Our Duke is as strong a stayer as there is and he was coming back on him in Leopardstown that day.
"I wasn't worried about three miles on that ground. In fact I would say if we made a mistake at Cheltenham it was running him in the wrong race. Anyway we got it right today and I'm thrilled.
"He hasn't had a real hard season. We picked his races and he didn't get one on top of the other. He should improve in the summer and we can dream for another while.
"Everybody would love to dream about the Gold Cup, but that's a dream on it's own. Isn't it great to have a horse you can run in a Grade One. He's won a Grade One by six lengths.
"The other horse (A Genie In Abottle) ran a blinder as well on ground he maybe wouldn't have liked that much, but I don't know - maybe he does like it.
"I've no doubt that Road To Respect will get three miles as well. I suppose if he was here today and Disko wasn't he might have won that race as well. We'd expect him to beat A Genie In Abottle.
"They are two lovely horses and hopefully they stay right."
