3 minute read
David Pipe’s runner is on a roll this season.
Main Fact took his fifth consecutive race of the season when running out a convincing winner of the £50,000 Burton Union Handicap Hurdle at Uttoxeter.
The seven-year-old joined David Pipe in 2018 and has been beaten only once since, finishing third on his debut for the stable in December.
Since then he has claimed a string of two-mile handicap hurdle races, lifting his rating from 98 to 132 in the progress.
A step up in trip to two and half miles failed to bring the winning streak to an end as the gelding triumphed by 15 lengths at 5-1 under a classy ride from 7lb claimer Fergus Gillard.
"What more can he do? I'm really not sure," Gillard said of the horse's progression.
"He's come on leaps and bounds when you consider where he's come from and how he's done it today in a nice race like that."
"This is definitely the best day of my career so far. Having a ride in the Welsh Grand National was brilliant, but this is even better."
Solstice Star claimed a ninth career success under Lilly Pinchin when taking the Marston's Brewery Lady Riders' Handicap Hurdle, run over two miles and seven and a half furlongs.
The Martin Keighley-trained 10-year-old ran prominently throughout and eased into a comfortable lead over the final flight before pulling clear to register a 17-length success at odds of 10-1.
"He deserves a good win, the old boy," Pinchin said.
"He just kept galloping, kept jumping. He stays very well, he's won on heavy ground so he knows the score, more so than me!"
Sam's Adventure made a winning return over fences when taking the three-mile 1834 Novices' Handicap Chase for Brian Ellison and Henry Brooke.
After a handful of placed chase efforts earlier in the season, the gelding was last seen finishing second on the all-weather in a 'jumpers' bumper' flat race at Newcastle.
Back on turf and over obstacles, the 6-1 shot held off a late challenge from Philip Hobbs' Musical Slave to prevail by a length and a quarter.
Brooke said: "I knew he wouldn't scoot away and go 10 lengths clear, I knew he'd go about five clear and then he'd idle on that ground.
"I've ridden him before and I've tried to ride him really tactically and it's almost backfired because he's never quite got there. He's always looked like he would, but never quite has.
"Today I've tried something different and it's nice to get him a win, finally."
The DE14 Novices' Hurdle went the way of 6-5 favourite Espion, who defeated just three rivals to post an easy 11-length victory for Hobbs and Richard Johnson.
Glance Back bounced back from a below-par performance at Leicester last time to take the Horninglow Handicap Chase at 7-1 for Emma-Jane Bishop.
Jamie Bargary steered the nine-year-old around the two-and-a-half-mile trip to an eventual 10-length victory.
"He's classy and he's coped with the ground," Bargary said.
"He's travelled well and he got racing early, but he's done it well on the ground in the end."
Havacuppa (5-1) took the 61 Deep Mares' Handicap Hurdle for trainer Susan Gardner with her daughter Lucy aboard, before Adam Wedge and Emma Lavelle teamed up to win the Pedigree Standard Open National Hunt Flat Race with Red Rookie (4-11).
