Chepstow’s three-day DragonBet Welsh Racing Festival is seen as the start of the jumps season and Dan Skelton began things the way he will want to go on by saddling five winners.
Skelton was champion trainer for the first time last season and he wasted little time getting off the mark by saddling Cooltobecareless to win the opener, a division of the novice hurdle, on Friday. In the hands of Skelton’s younger brother Harry, he cruised to an impressive 13-length success and looks a smart prospect for the team.
Sacre Chef might have been fancied to win for his yard at the track on Saturday in the juvenile hurdle but stablemate Whistling Dave prevailed by six lengths under Charlie Todd.
Harry Skelton did not have to wait long to register another winner as he partnered Hitintheheadlines to victory in the maiden hurdle on the card. Perhaps surprisingly, the gelding went off a 14-1 chance but was able to repel the Paul Nicholls-trained Stick To The Board, somewhat of a hype horse whose owners include Sir Alex Ferguson.
The Skelton brothers then completed a Saturday double thanks to Northern Singer, who was way too good for her rivals in the mares’ bumper. Divine Diva gave the Warwickshire trainer his fifth winner of the weekend when she ran on late to land the mares’ novice hurdle.
Paul Nicholls, whom Dan Skelton worked for, also came to the party, winning Saturday’s handicap hurdle for four-year-olds with Treasure Planet.
Champion trainer 14 times, Nicholls said: “That was just the start we wanted. We worked hard with a lot of horses to get them ready. He looked fit and well, and stays nicely. I said to the owners he needed to improve on what he achieved last season, but he obviously has.”
The feature race on Saturday was the £75,000 Wasdell Group Silver Trophy Handicap Hurdle, which went to Daylatedollarshort. He is trained by Olly Murphy and was ridden by Sean Bowen, the champion jockey from Pembrokeshire who came in for praise.
“This is all down to Sean,” said joint-owner Gary Hicks. “Today wasn’t his Gold Cup.
“Today was about getting him to settle and he did that beautifully. The next challenge is an intermediate hurdle at Cheltenham on November 14. This horse will stay forever and will go on good ground, which is what we get at Cheltenham.”
That race carried £42,000 to the winner, but West Hill Verde pocketed his connections just over that when he came out on top in the £80,000 DragonBet Persian War Novices’ Hurdle on Friday. Going off a 16-1 chance, he was given a prominent ride by Callum Pritchard, who hails from the Rhondda valleys.
Jonjo O’Neill’s name is on the DragonBet Welsh Champion Hurdle roll of honour once more.
Some 46 years after he rode the legendary Sea Pigeon to victory in the prestigious race, O’Neill struck again in the contest when he and son AJ (photographed) sent out Pioneer Pete to land the spoils.
It was a proper family affair, with the six-year-old ridden by his other son Jonjo Jr.
Pioneer Pete is improving at a rate of knots. This was his fourth win in five outings since March – his only defeat coming in a hot Punchestown handicap – and he gave his supporters little cause for concern as he was always up with the pace and went clear before the last flight on his way to a four-length success.
