PRE-CHRISTMAS CRACKER OF A LINE-UP FOR FAKENHAM’S SKYBET RACEDAY
Fakenham’s seven-race Skybet Raceday on Sunday looks set to be a pre-Christmas cracker for after the initial entries were revealed.
There are endless possibilities for festive success stories throughout the day and especially in the closing feature, the £20,000 Skybet Female Jockeys’ Chase.
One of the initial 13 entries is the Tom Ellis trained Lunar Contact, owned locally by Keith Loads. The six-year-old gelding completed a hat-trick of victories in November at Southwell having earlier won twice at Fakenham on November 19 and October 30.
The 3.15pm event has attracted top competition however, with the Christian Williams’ Welsh raider Stringtoyourbow bidding for a hat-trick after winning at Musselbrough and Southwell this season as well as two previous Fakenham winners in Bashers Reflection and Captain Speaking, trained by Ben Case and Nick Littmoden respectively.
That feature race is over two miles and five furlongs but more stamina will be needed for the 2.15pm Skybet Stayers’ Chase. There are 15 entries for the three miles and five furlongs marathon including previous Fakenham winners Go Fox, Jonny Max, Ballyrashine and Gold Clermont. Lyrical Genius looks interesting for Sarah Humphreys while Lucy Wadham has grey gelding Samourai One, second at the course’s meeting last month.
Wadham has an eye-catching entry in the 1.45pm Skybet Maiden Hurdle in Miss Cynthia. The four-year-old filly makes a hurdles debut with Tom Cannon booked to ride. It will be her debut run for Wadham after the horse left flat trainer Sir Mark Prescott. Her last appearance was in October when fourth at Paris Longchamp in the Qatar Prix du Cadran, won by Ascot Gold Cup winner Kyprios.
The Skybet day starts with the 12.15pm Yuletide Hurdle in which James Owen has entered Star Legend, whose only career success was at Fakenham in November last year while in the 12.45pm Mares’ Hurdle, Neil King has Little Talks who has been placed four times when running at the course since finishing third in this race a year ago.
Should the Stuart Edmunds trained Kosasiempre land the 1.15pm £50,000 Queen Boudicca Series Qualifier Mares’ Chase, cheers will be heard for miles around as the six-year-old mare is owner by the many members of the Fakenham Racing Club. Kosasiempre, with Charlie Hammond booked to ride, won last time, on chase debut, at Leicester three weeks ago.
Evan Williams is a Welsh trainer who loves to win at Fakenham and he has two entered in the 2.45pm Handicap Hurdle in Coup De Gold and Sabbathical, the latter a Fakenham scorer in November 2022, a winner at Bangor in April 2023 and off the course for the 610 days since.
