JUBILANT JACK CELEBRATES AS LEGEND LANDS THE TOP PRIZE
Jubilant winning jockey Jack Quinlan praised Fakenham racecourse after landing the feature race on the Lucy Wadham trained Potters Legend.
There were just four runners in the David Keith Memorial Chase worth almost £25,000, won by the 10/11 favourite, who jumped all 18 fences superbly.
“It’s a really good prize. Fakenham does well to put up such good prize money and it’s a shame they are not rewarded with more runners. But I was a beneficiary of that today so I’m not complaining,” said Quinlan.
“It’s great for Mrs May, the owner, because she has missed seeing her horses run. This one is a home-bred so makes the victory even sweeter,” he added.
“Potters Legend deserves this as he has been running long distances on heavy ground all winter,” he added.
Mr Jack returned to Fakenham less than a fortnight after winning at the course, and did it again, beating Voodoo Doll in a tight finish to the Aldiss Furnishing Stores Hurdle.
Trained by Andy Irvine and ridden by Niall Houlihan, the gelding made it four wins from five starts, returned 11/8 favourite.
There was a shock in the Snellings Norfolk National Raceday Conditional Jockeys’ Chase, when 13-year-old outsider, Red Inca, stormed home at 22/1.
Ridden by Fergus Gregory and trained by Alan Phillips, Red Inca had chalked up a first success at Southwell in September, and bounded along on perfect going to score by two lengths.
Glimpse of Gold proved another tricky winner for punters to find when taking the Cecil and Sheila Buttifant Memorial Hurdle at 18/1.
Sarah Humphrey’s 10-year-old thrives at Fakenham, where he won in October, and Alexander Thorne gave him a positive ride. Favourite Reverend Jacobs was upsides at the last but Thorne urged home the eventually winner.
The opening Bruce Towers and Sons Heating Plumbing Novices Hurdle went to impressive 8/13 favourite Torn and Frayed. The Hereford winner, trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies and ridden by son Sam, led from the start for a facile success by 20 lengths from Take Your Time, whose jumping was much inferior to the winner’s.
Trainer and rider Dale Peters celebrated landing the Queen’s Cup Hunters’ Chase on 13/8 chance Peacocks Secret before the finale, the Fisher Electrical Contractor Mare’s bumper, went to Derby winning trainer Michael Bell’s debutant, Heartbreaker, ridden by Harry Cobden and returned at 9/4.
