Outsider Sawbuck makes history as joint-biggest winner ever returned in Ireland

The joint-biggest winner in the history of Irish racing was returned today after the Conor O'Dwyer-trained Sawbuck won at Punchestown at 300-1.

The 2 mile half a furlong contest was the opener on the card with 22 runners, many considered to be without a chance of victory.

Sawbuck was always prominent and overcame a mistake at the last to comfortably take victory by four lengths ahead of Ballybawn Belter.

O'Dwyer’s son Conor was the jockey for the historic winner.

It was Sawbuck’s third run over hurdles, with the previous two coming in juvenile maidens at the same venue in 2021.

He had been beaten a total of 98 lengths in those contests, with his last outing finishing near last in an all-weather flat contest at Dundalk.

The win matches the achievement of Luke Comer’s He Knows No Fear, victorious at Leopardstown in August 2020. The record in the UK in 250-1.

Charlie O’Dwyer said: "I’m completely surprised by him. He's been in great form at home, and I thought after his two previous runs over hurdles, if he left here with a nice run and finished somewhere in the middle I would have been delighted."