PROMINENT racers can be hard to peg back on the round course at the Curragh and that was certainly the case in the 20-runner Keadeen Hotel Handicap run over a mile and a quarter on Saturday, writes Andy Stephens.

Perry Mason and Perfect Your Craft dominated the finish after being the first pair throughout, while Fiver Friday, who finished fourth, and Cloud Seeker, fifth, also raced prominently.

The exception was Iron Fist, who stayed on strongly from off the pace under Shane Foley to be beaten little more than a length into third, having also had a tricky draw in stall 17 to negotiate.

Iron Fist’s turn in a big handicap looks close, as he raced exuberantly in the second half of the field before powering home. He was fastest in the eighth furlong (10.86 sec), second quickest in the penultimate furlong (10.88 sec) and then swiftest again in the final furlong (11.50 sec).

The Jessica Harrington-trained four-year-old clocked the top speed in the race for third time in his past four starts - he hit 41.85 mph on this occasion - having previously also run well when runner-up in another big field at Cork.

Another to take out of the meeting was the Natalia Lupini-trained Zia Zabel, who was beaten a head by Causeway in the 10-furlong Group 3 Heider Family Stables Gallinule Stakes.

The son of Ghaiyyath had pounced late when losing his maiden tag at Cork in April and almost repeated the trick, being faster than the winner in each of the final six furlongs, but finding the line coming too soon.

His eighth furlong of 10.93 sec was the fastest of the race, and he clocked easily the top speed, 41.65 mph, in the penultimate furlong.

He’s blown his handicap mark, but clearly belongs in pattern company, with his low stride cadence offering encouragement that a mile and a half could be worth exploring.

He averaged only 2.16 strides per second here and his stride stretched out to an impressive 8.42 metres at one stage.