La Bague Au Roi in ‘perfect’ show
Greatrex-trained mare beats impressive field Hobbs continues his run with Maxwell’s 33-1 shot
Some timely rain coinciding with Newbury’s first meeting of the season gave the nascent jump campaign, stymied thus far by quick ground, a boost yesterday, and the first sighting of Supreme Novice Hurdle runner-up Kalashnikov over fences at Warwick today should give it another push.
The Warren Greatrex-trained La Bague Au Roi turned in the best performance of yesterday when the seven-year-old mare beat Lostintranslation by a length and a half, with Talk is cheap and Thomas Campbell in third and fourth, also looking sure to win before long.
Greatrex admitted to being nervous before the Kka-highpoint Beginners’ Chase because of the expectation he had for La Bague Au Roi. “That was perfect,” he said. “She jumped great and you won’t get many better than that. She’s beaten some 150 [rated] horses there so we could probably go anywhere now and her 7lb mares’ allowance will stand her in good stead against the best. We’ve always thought her good – I might never get another mare as good as this.”
Last year was something of annus horribilis for Philip Hobbs as a bug laid his string low. If there is an upside to that, though, it is that his horses will be well handicapped this season, although yesterday’s winner of the Agetur UK Novice Hurdle, Ecu De La Noverie, his sixth winner in three days, was not in the yard last season.
He was bought by David Maxwell, who has aspirations of winning the amateur jockeys’ title, and the four-year-old, already a winner over fences in France, was sent off at 33-1, mainly because, as he would be the first to admit, Maxwell is not Richard Johnson.
Having led at the last, he was headed up the run-in by James Bowen on Mister Fisher, but Maxwell conjured another effort from his mount to win by a short-head. If it is fun he is after, then Ecu de La Noverie should give him plenty.
“His lad [Nathan Vergen] has been saying since the spring that nothing could keep up with this horse but everyone was taking it with a pinch of salt,” said Maxwell.
Amy Murphy’s Kalashnikov will face just three rivals on his fencing debut in the £50 Risk Free On Racing With Smarkets Novice Chase at Warwick. Murphy, who trains him for her father, said: “There are 130-rated opponents in there so it will be no easy race. Hopefully, it will bring him on for the rest of the season.”