Champion
trainer, Paul Nicholls has started the new National Hunt season as he means to
go on, with plenty of winners. The
2015/2016 championship went to the wire, with Nicholls and Willie Mullins going
head to head to the final day at Sandown in April.
Nicholls
is now making every winner count and already leads the new title with over
£100K in accumulated prize money. The
trainer has around 20 horses for summer jumping this year which means we will certainly
see more of his runners at Pitchcroft, confirmed by his multiple entries for
tomorrow’s meeting.
Nicholls’
only runner at last week’s Worcester meeting made it a winning one. Southfield Vic (pictured) is a four-time hurdle winner
and managed to record his first victory over fences in the novice chase to
bring his total prize money to date to over £69k. Former jockey and now Nicholls’ assistant
trainer, Harry Derham commented afterwards that the Old Vic gelding who took
the race on the bridle by 25 lengths, prefers a sounder surface and that he
will have an entry at tomorrow’s meeting in another novice chase.
A
less successful but equally interesting runner at the same meeting was Comely.
Bred at Hanbury by Robert Chugg, the Midnight Legend filly was sold as a 3 year
old for £36K to the Queen. There were
high hopes that she would emulate the Queen’s last runner and bumper winner at
the course on Ladies Day in 2014, Special Agent, but unfortunately it was not
to be and the half-sister to Banjaxed Girl was beaten by 48 lengths into fourth
place.
An
event we always look forward to is the annual presentation of the Richard Davis
Award to the up and coming conditional jockey who has accumulated the most
points from rides at Worcester, Cheltenham, Chepstow, Ludlow, Stratford, Towcester
and Warwick racecourses. Davis was a
former jump jockey from Flyford Flavel, and his family presented the award to
Cieran Gethings last Friday. Former
recipients of this award include Sam Twiston-Davies, Aidan Coleman and Sean
Bowen.
A
new addition to my column is a regular update of the ‘scores on the doors’, incorporating
the latest standings of our leading trainer, jockey and owner competitions. After three meetings, Philip Hobbs and Sean
Bowen are at the top of the trainer and jockey tables respectively, while The
Troubled Pink Partnership heads the owner’s table. I am certain there will be a good juggling of
positions as the season progresses.
Tomorrow
is the highlight of the racing season at Worcester. Ladies Day, traditionally staged on the same
day as the Derby, has attracted 138 entries including local interest from the
yards of David Dennis, Richard Newland, Tony Carroll and Ian Williams. Worcester winners Thoonavolla, Myroundorurs, Carrigkerry
and Castlemorris King are amongst those who could well share the increased
prize money on offer for the meeting this year.
Gates
open at 11.30am.
