Top Notch performance earns first victory over fences
CLASS told in the £15,000 Highflyer/Million In Mind 4-Y-O & 5-Y-O Novices´ Chase, the highlight of Warwick’s seven-race card on Wednesday, as hot favourite Top Notch easily saw off his three rivals to land his first success over fences, writes David Hucker.
Although only attracting small fields, this race has been won by some good horses over the years and owners Simon Munir and Isaac Souede were hoping to follow up the success of their Bristol De Mai in 2016 with Top Notch, who was near to the top of the hurdling tree, finishing fifth behind Annie Power in the Stan James Champion Hurdle in March.
Top Notch had made his debut over fences when a close-up third to the highly-regarded Charbel at Uttoxeter last month and, despite getting in a bit close to the fourth-last fence, came right away from Pemba in the home straight to complete a double on the afternoon for jockey Daryl Jacob.
A field of 13 had lined up for the opening PJ & KR Smith-Maxwell Horse Ambulances "National Hunt" Novices´ Hurdle over two miles and it was the Dan Skelton trained Asum who headed the betting to build on his promising debut run over the course in April.
Held up by Harry Skelton, Asum made a mistake at the penultimate flight and could finish only fourth behind Midnight Maestro, who asserted on the run-in to follow up his Doncaster bumper win and make a successful hurdles debut for owner J P McManus and trainer Alan King.
The rain had really got into the ground as the runners set out for the Whitson Bloodstock Mares´ Novices´ Handicap Chase, won in determined style by Lilly Of The Moor, who proved too strong for Troubled Soul from the final fence
Top-weight Chantara Rose, a course winner over hurdles, was struggling when unseating jockey Noel Fehily four fences from home and Song Saa, whose two wins last season came on soft and heavy going, was also finding the pace a bit too hot.
Meanwhile, up front, Paddy Brennan had sent Trouble Soul clear of the field, looking the likely winner, but she couldn’t resist the late charge of Lilly Of The Moor, who was ridden out by Jacob to finish four and a half lengths to the good at the line.
Chepstow winner Colin’s Sister topped the ratings in the Thoroughbred Breeders Association Mares´ Novices´ Hurdle and she was well-backed, shortening from 2-1 to 13-8 as her market rival Which One Is Which drifted in the betting.
Any chance that Which One Is Which may have had evaporated at the sixth hurdle when a bad mistake saw her drop to last and those who had followed the money collected as Colin’s Sister led two flights from home and stayed on strongly to record back-to-back wins and bring up jockey Brennan’s 1,000 winner in Great Britain and Ireland.
Despite two absentees, there was still a competitive-looking field for the Racing UK.com Conditional Jockeys´ Handicap Hurdle but the race proved to be anything but, as 5-2 favourite Royal Plaza and William Featherstone turned it into a procession from the third-last fight, finishing 15 lengths clear of Reilly’s Minor.
Yanmare followed up his Uttoxeter win in the long-distance Geoff Hancock Celebration Handicap Chase before Shearling took the concluding Whitson Bloodstock David Nicholson Memorial Fillies´ "Junior" Standard Open National Hunt Flat Race.
Trainer Alan King learnt his trade as assistant to Gloucestershire trainer David Nicholson, in whose memory the race is run each year and, having won it in 2014 with Lady Persephone, was looking to Passing Call this time.
But, in a slow-run race, the 2-1 favourite could only finish third to Shearling, who was fortunate to beat True Self by a head. The runner-up, who had steered an erratic course up the home straight would have been a comfortable winner if galloping in a straight line, but snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.
