Britain's Karen Dixon, who rerouted her top horse, Too Smart, to Punchestown when he went lame hours before his dressage test at Badminton last weekend, more than benefitted from the change in her travel plans when the 12-yearold took a strong lead in the IFG Three-star yesterday.

Too Smart, which provided Dixon with the second of her two Punchestown victories in 1994, was found to have an infected leg at Badminton, but is now back to full fitness and earned a record 206 points from Canadian ground jury president Cara Whitham.

The resulting score of 36.2 penalties leaves the British pair well clear of Thursday's overnight leaders from France, Rodolphe Scherer and the Selle Francais gelding Bambi Di Briere, with a quartet of British riders, led by Terry Boon, following in the lineup.

Co Armagh jockey Sasha Harrison, a member of Ireland's gold medal young rider team three years ago, is best of the home side with the French-bred All Love Du Fenaud lying 17th going into today's cross country.

Bermuda's Tim Collins thought he had overdone the warm-up with Delton Magna, resulting in what he described afterwards as a rather flat test, which included a mistake in the canter work. But the Isuzu Two-star judges voted in his favour, giving him top marks of 45.8 to leave him 1.6 penalties clear of the Irish trio of Jeremy Spring, Rachelle Harding and Susan Shortt.

New Zealand's Mark Todd lies fifth with his overnight leader from Thursday, Regal Scot, and opens today's cross country action at 9.44 a.m.

Co Tipperary youngster David Myerscough also had memory problems during his test with the Diamond Serpent mare Roses Lane, but still managed to earn the best marks to hold the overnight advantage in the Barton Transport junior championship.