THE two miles and six and a half-furlong beginners’ chase at Galway’s October bank holiday meeting, the WB Gavin & Co Irish EBF Beginners Chase, is always a race that is well worth watching.

This is a race that has been won in the past by such luminaries as China Rock, Last Instalment, Jessies Dream, Lyreen Legend and, in 2013, by Don Cossack, and Carlingford Lough was third behind Lyreen Legend in 2012.

This year’s renewal looked strong, with De Plotting Shed, Sutton Manor, Mall Dini and Free Expression all lining up, but Presenting Percy beat them all.

There was a lot to like about the performance that the Pat Kelly-trained gelding put up. He travelled well through his race for Davy Russell and his jumping was superb for a debutant.

He moved nicely into the Dip and jumped the last two fences well, landing just about in front with De Plotting Shed on his inside over the last. De Plotting Shed picked up well, but it always looked like Presenting Percy would have his measure, and Philip Reynolds’ horse stayed on strongly up the hill to win by three lengths, with the front pair nicely clear of Champoleon, who stayed on well to take third place.

The winning time was not great, it was a fair way slower than the other two chases run over the same course and distance on the day, but they did not go a great pace in the beginners’ chase, Barry Geraghty was able to engineer his own fractions on Free Expression, and a sedate pace should have been more a negative than a positive for the winner, given how well he stays.

It could be that several of the horses who contested Monday’s race will make their respective marks in staying novice chases this season, but it is Presenting Percy who is the most exciting.

Still just six, he was high-profile and progressive over hurdles last season, he was an impressive winner of the Pertemps Final off a mark of 146 at Cheltenham in March, and the Cheltenham Festival is surely again on connections’ radar already.