Aug 23, 2018

Newton Abbot Racecourse Report Tuesday 21 August 2018

Passing Call, an unlucky loser on her last visit, landed Newton Abbot’s big race at the course’s final evening meeting of the year on Tuesday, taking the Class 3 newtonabbotracing.com Handicap Hurdle by four lengths from outsider Garo De Juilley.

With a prize fund of £12,800 on offer, there was a competitive field for this feature event, with the classy Court Minstrel looking to defy top-weight of 12-2. At the age of eleven, his best days had looked to be behind him now and punters preferred the younger Red Tornado, an easy winner at Stratford last time, and the five-year-old Passing Call who, after a run of near misses, had won her last two starts.

On her last appearance at the course, Passing Call had to take evasive action to avoid a loose horse charging at her the wrong way up the run-in, but she had no such problems this time, completing her hat-trick despite jumping left at the final two hurdles, comfortably beating 16-1 shot Garo De Juilley.

The win completed a double on the day for Wiltshire trainer Alan King, who had seen his Nylon Speed and Martin Harley triumph on the all-weather surface at Kempton Park in the afternoon.

Harry Skelton has set a scorching pace at the top of the jockeys’ championship table right from the start of the season but, after scoring on Holryale at Worcester the week before, the winners had dried up and he came into the meeting looking to end a losing run of twelve on Set List in the opening Racegoers Club 50th Anniversary “National Hunt” Novices’ Hurdle.

But, it wasn’t to be, as Set List was declared a non-runner, leaving very little opposition to Exeter winner Serosevsky, with Harry Fry’s horse going off a hot 1-4 favourite to see off his remaining three rivals.

He had given odds-on favourite Dead Right a real fright when trying to follow up under a penalty at Warwick in May and, ridden by Aine O’Connor, who landed a win for the stable at Southwell on Sunday, he glided past Spicy Fruity between the last two flights to score by four and a half lengths.

Mille Nautique had been one of the gambles of the day in the Phillip Dodd Memorial Handicap Chase, shortening from 6-1 to 7-2 in the opening show on the course, to win on his second outing for trainer Fergal O’Brien. Pulled up over hurdles behind Angel Of Harlem last month, he turned in another disappointing performance, being last of the six finishers after leading to the fourth-last fence.

The race went to 10-1 shot Candy Burg, who shouldered top-weight to beat favourite As You Like and three-time course winner Moorlands Jack. Winning trainer Olly Murphy is only in his second season with a license, but Candy Burg was his fifth win from just ten runners at the course and his 21st in all for the current campaign.

Nine lined up for the longest race of the evening, the Remembering Dear Lauren Scott Handicap Hurdle over an extended three and a quarter miles, with Lord Topper, a course winner under jockey Page Fuller earlier in the season, heading the weights.

The combination struck again as Lord Topper, returned the 11-4 favourite, made all the running to beat four-time course winner Midnight Sapphire, who was having her first run for trainer David Pipe after moving from Victor Dartnall’s stable.

The good run of As You Like earlier on the card would have encouraged supporters of Top Chief in the Racegoers Club 50th Anniversary Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Chase, as there had been just a head between them when the two had met over the course last month.

Although Top Chief had subsequently disappointed behind Eric The Third when reappearing last week, he ran much better this time, being caught just yards from the winning line by Midnight Queen, who prevailed by half a length under Richard Patrick, with Hardtorock the same distance away in third in the best finish of the evening.

In a race where four of the nine runners failed to complete, it was a win for trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies and his jockey son Sam in the concluding Actuate Marketing Mares’ Handicap Hurdle, as Hoponandsee scored on her second outing for the stable, landing her first success to deny market leader Versifier by half a length.

The next fixture at Newton Abbot Racecourse is Saturday 1 September. Tickets can be bought at our online ticket store until 10am on the day of the fixture or at the gates on the day.