Fakenham racecourse is hoping for better luck with the weather this Thursday (January 31) to quickly erase the memory of last Thursday’s abandonment due to heavy overnight frost in north Norfolk.
Thursday’s six-race card starts at 1.45pm with the feature being the 3.50pm Pudding Norton Handicap Hurdle worth almost £14,000. At the entry stage, the race has been re-opened.
The opener sees Stuart Edmunds, a trainer with a good Fakenham record, with A Little Chaos, a five-year-old mare who won at the course over the same two-mile distance back in December.
Duhallow Gesture, runner-up at Lingfield last time for Anthony Honeyball and Olly Murphy’s Foxtrot Juliet, a faller at Fakenham back in November, are also interesting entries.
Christian Williams is a trainer in good form and he has three entries in the 2.15pm Kettlestone Handicap Hurdle, including Cottonvale, runner-up last time at Ffos Las behind Briac, a progressive sort who has gone on to win again.
Williams also has two other last time winners in Strictlyadancer, a Fakenham scorer on New Year’s Day and Uno Mas, a winner at Catterick three weeks ago.
Grand old 15-year-old veteran That’s The Deal has been entered by trainer John Cornwall in the 2.50pm Shereford Chase for what will be the gelding’s 101st career start. He will be going for a 10th chase win from 98 attempts but faces some good-looking rivals.
Caroline Bailey has Global Domination, a winner at Fakenham in April and runner-up at Huntingdon a fortnight ago and two rivals who were first and second at Catterick earlier this month, Mistress Massini and Holy Street, trained respectively by Honeyball and Laura Morgan.
It’s not common for Venetia Williams to send runners to Fakenham but she has entered Cloudy Glen, a six-year-old gelding, in the 3.20pm Hempton Novices Hurdle in which he will bid for a hat-trick after scoring at Chepstow and Haydock.
Rivals include Murphy’s Leicester winner Chez Hans and Tim Vaughan’s Doncaster victor De Forgotten Man as well as Coole Well, representing Jamie Snowden, that gelding second at Fontwell on Boxing Day after a Plumpton success.
A two-mile chase closes the card at 4.20pm in which Nick Littmoden has entered By Rail, who won over course and distance in December before finish third of three at Leicester over the Christmas period.
Words: Terry Redhead
INSPECTION AT 7 am Thursday 31st January due to a forecast of very cold Wed night and cold day on Thursday
