| Course: CHELTENHAM | Race date:17/04/08 | Race time:4:05 | Runners:13 |
| Race distance:3m | Going:Good | Winners time:5m 58.20s |
| Horse | Jockey | Trainer | Stall | Weight | Age | RPR | OR | Odds | B High | B Ave | B Low | In run | Finished | Dist Behind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jug Of Punch | Liam Treadwell | S T Lewis | 10-0 | 9 | 0 | 108 | 50/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 1 | ||
| Poker De Sivola | Richard McGrath | Ferdy Murphy | 11-1 | 5 | 0 | 123 | 17/2 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 2 | 4 | |
| Arrayou | A P McCoy | O Sherwood | 11-5 | 7 | 0 | 127 | 10/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 3 | 3¾ | |
| Hopkins | Dominic Elsworth | H D Daly | 11-1 | 7 | 0 | 123 | 6/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 4 | ½ | |
| According To Pete | Fergus King | J M Jefferson | 11-10 | 7 | 0 | 132 | 7/2J | NA | NA | NA | NA | 5 | 4 | |
| Downing Street | Alan O´Keeffe | Jennie Candlish | 10-12 | 7 | 0 | 120 | 25/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 6 | 1½ | |
| Rimsky | Sam Thomas | N A Twiston-Davies | 11-8 | 7 | 0 | 130 | 14/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 7 | 1¼ | |
| Theatre Dance | S E Durack | D W P Arbuthnot | 11-1 | 7 | 0 | 123 | 7/2J | NA | NA | NA | NA | 8 | 1 | |
| Chiaro | Richard Johnson | P J Hobbs | 11-8 | 6 | 0 | 130 | 10/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 9 | 33 | |
| Redemption | Tom Scudamore | N A Twiston-Davies | 11-12 | 13 | 0 | 134 | 33/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 10 | 14 | |
| Mith Hill | David Dennis | Ian Williams | 11-5 | 7 | 0 | 127 | 33/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 11 | 42 | |
| Jockser | Wayne Kavanagh | J W Mullins | 10-9 | 7 | 0 | 120 | 20/1 | NA | NA | NA | NA | 12 | 91 | |
| Tora Bora | Timmy Murphy | B G Powell | 11-4 | 6 | 0 | 126 | 15/2 | NA | NA | NA | NA | PU |
Jug Of Punch pressed leaders, challenged from 8th, led after 4 out, hard driven approaching last and stayed on well run-in
Poker De Sivola with leaders, challenged from 6th and still upsides under pressure 2 out, kept on well approaching last but no impression on winner
Arrayou in rear but in touch, ridden along 3 out, stayed on under pressure from 2 out to take 3rd run-in but no chance with leading duo
Hopkins in touch, chased leaders 3 out, soon ridden, stayed on same pace approaching last
According To Pete in rear, some progress 4 out, one pace after next, stayed on again from 2 out but never going pace to be competitive
Downing Street mistakes and not fluent in rear, ridden from 6th, stayed on from 2 out but not reach leaders
Rimsky in touch, chased leaders 4 out, ridden 3 out, weakened next, blundered last
Theatre Dance in touch, headway to track leaders when blundered 8th, soon recovered, ridden after 3 out, weakened 2 out
Chiaro chased leaders, ridden after 3 out, soon weakened, tailed off
Redemption hit 6th, always in rear, tailed off
Mith Hill chased leaders, jumped slowly 4th, hit 8th and soon weakened, tailed off
Jockser tailed off from 7th,
Tora Bora ridden to lead start, headed after 4 out, soon weakened, tailed off when pulled up before last
Starting from 13lb out of the handicap, and seeking his first win since October 2006, the nine-year-old not only won but won well as, having sat second for most of the race, he found plenty once sent to the front and was always in command thereafter.
Perhaps the cheekpieces he was wearing for only the second time worked the oracle but, in all likelihood, this victory will have to join falafel and the popularity of Wayne Rooney's omnipresent girlfriend in the drawer marked 'unfathomable'.
Cheekpieces also seemed to help Poker De Sivola, who, sporting the sheepskins for the first time, ran a cracker. He was the only horse to give the winner a fight up the straight and, possibly also refreshed after a little break, returned to form after some uninspiring efforts.
The hat-trick-seeking Hopkins was unable to match his previous performances moved out of novice company but ran well enough, as did According To Pete, but after moving up smoothly at the top of the hill, the northern raider folded quite tamely.
This run came on the back of two good thirds at the Cheltenham and Aintree festivals, and those past exertions may have left a mark.
Downing Street made a series of bad mistakes, so did well to finish as close as he did, which was one place ahead of Eider Chase third Rimsky, who was not as effective back over hurdles.
Theatre Dance got the eighth flight all wrong but was soon back into contention, so his eventual capitulation was a disappointment, as was the run of Chiaro.
Racing results courtesy of racing post. Please note that ever effort is made to ensure results are correct but I accept no liability for mistakes. The data is provided as a free service.
Please visit my Blog or sign up to my racing forum for the latest news and views.