JAMIE BARGE!

Stewards OK Mr Antolini’s Cup win after real scrap

JAMIE BARGARY won the race — and the argument — as Mr Antolini sprang a 20-1 Imperial Cup shock to give the jockey the biggest success of his fledgling career.

Bargary’s mount got the better of a tooth-and-nail scrap up the Sandown hill with Call Me Lord and Daryl Jacob to land the final big betting race before next week’s Cheltenham Festival.

But head-on footage showed three separate instances of interference on the climb to the winning post, triggering a stewards’ inquiry.

ITV viewers watched as Bargary and Jacob stated their case to the officials, before neck winner Mr Antolini, giving trainer Nigel Twiston-davies a second Imperial Cup after Flying Angel’s triumph two years ago, was allowed to keep the £42,202 first prize. “There’s always a possibility you might lose it, but, because I’d won by a neck, I had the advantage,” said the winning jockey, handed a three-day suspension for careless riding.

“I thought I would always be the winner. If it had been a furlong or two furlongs more, we would have still won as my lad was idling.

“It takes a good horse to win an Imperial Cup. I’ve been lucky enough to win big races at the big tracks, but it’s a massive day.”

Asked to talk through his advocacy skills, Bargary said: “It’s a big handicap with a lot of money – you have to try to go for it. Daryl’s made a fair case, but I’ve put it up to him. It’s not easy, but it’s what you’ve got to do. It’s a big race –it’s not a gaff track, it’s not a gaff race.”

Although impassioned in giving his testimony to the stewards, a disconsolate Jacob said: “The situation wasn’t overturned, so it makes no difference now, does it?”

Sponsor Matchbook put up a £100,000 bonus if yesterday’s winner went on to double up at Cheltenham – but Mr Antolini doesn’t hold a Festival entry.

“He was too lowly rated to get in,” explained Twiston-davies.

At Wolverhampton, Big Country made a winning return for 2018 in the Lincoln Trial Handicap and is now 12-1 ( from 16-1) for the first big race of the Flat season at Doncaster in 13 days’ time.

■ AMERICAN, an eight-length second to Definitly Red in the Cotswold Chase at Cheltenham in January, has been added to the field for next Friday’s Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup at a cost of £27,500.