Bryan Smart was delighted to see Foxtrot Romeo justify his faith with a fantastic run in defeat in Saturday's Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh.
The three-year-old had won a Hamilton maiden on his debut last August, but failed to make a significant impact on his two subsequent starts as a juvenile.
He was unsurprisingly sent off at 33-1 for his seasonal debut in the Irish Classic, but outran his odds to finish a length second to proven Group One performer Power.
Smart is now looking forward to aiming his colt at some major prizes both this year and next.
"It was a great run, you can't say much more than that really," said the Yorkshire trainer.
"We've always thought he was a nice horse. He only won a maiden last year, but he was such a big horse and we knew he'd improve a lot from two to three.
"He has strengthened up, but he still has a big frame to fill and I don't actually think you'll see the best of him until next year.
"I think everyone thought I'd lost the plot by running him yesterday, but he took all the travelling and everything really well and I'm really proud of him.
"He'll be entered in all the smart races now. There is a race in France for him and he is entered at Royal Ascot (St James's Palace Stakes), so we'll just try to pick the right race for him.
"He has a proper stallion's pedigree so if we can win a Group One with him, he's going to be worth a few quid."
