There were nine winners for Wales at the weekend.
David Probert was in action at Ascot on Saturday and enjoyed the easiest of successes on the Ian Williams-trained Night Breeze. Reverting to his optimum trip of a mile and a half, he demolished a field of seasoned handicappers, taking the lead a quarter of a mile out and winning by almost four lengths.
Monmouthshire trainer Thomas Faulkner’s recent acquisition Northcliff was another on the Ascot card to complete a hat-trick, making nearly all the running. Faulkner tried to buy him two years ago only to be outbid, but he managed to get him at the sales last month. He ran in his wife Danika’s colours, who got home from hospital that morning after giving birth to the couple’s second son.
At Lingfield, an unusually valuable Class 5 sprint handicap went to Grace Harris’s So Smart. He was lightning fast coming out of the stalls from a bad draw on the far side, and his jockey Kieran O’Neill managed to cross over thirteen others to bag the favoured stands side rail. From there he was never headed. Grace is photographed.
The unstoppable Sean Bowen took the bumper on Haydock’s mixed card on Don Cantillon’s So Proud. Once he’d taken the lead two furlongs out the horse gamely repelled three challengers to finish a neck in front. The unraced gelding was returned at 5/2, a telltale sign that he had shown plenty at home.
It's business as usual at the Bowen yard, where new sole-licence holder Mickey sent one horse up to Hexham, which duly won. River Of Joy, partnered by stable conditional Shane Fenelon, stayed on strongly at the end of the 3m chase at the stamina-sapping Northumberland track.
James Davies got off the mark for the current campaign at Hexham with Miss Maverick, who he rode to three consecutive hurdle wins this time last year. She lost her form running over fences in the winter and clearly prefers being back over the smaller obstacles.
There were small fields for Sunday’s jumps cards and Evan Williams took advantage of easy pickings by landing a double at Plumpton. Walkinthewoods made it eleventh time lucky over fences at odds of 8/15, his two opponents proving very moderate. Adam Wedge had to get serious with him to take the lead approaching the final fence, but from that point it was game over.
Then D’Jelo Dela Barriere, with Ellis Collier up, took the conditional jockeys hurdle. The horse had regressed since a facile Hereford novice victory in November, but today he found his level and readily drew away from his main rival on the run-in.
Meanwhile, at Ludlow James Bowen came out on top in the two-runner 3m chase. His mount Shanagh Bob jumped slightly better than his sole opponent and just had the edge on stamina as well, mastering his rival in the final furlong.
