Tipperary’s Shane Breen got straight off the mark at the five-star Nations Cup final show in Barcelona when galloping to victory in Friday’s opening class, the 1.45m Negrita Cup, aboard the speed machine Can Ya Makan.

The 12-year-old Canturo-sired stallion broke the beam in a time of 58.32 seconds and set the standard for the class. Offaly’s Darragh Kenny gave it a very good try with the Extra van Essene and his time of 58.61 was good enough for the runner-up place.