It was another glittering night for Wales and the West, who secured a hat-trick but star Billy Loughnane is back on top of the jockey’s standings after a win on Bennetot
Strong start for Team East
It looked to be a strong start for the leaders from Week 3 as they claimed the opener with Nazron. He powered clear in the first on Week 4 of the Racing League under Daniel Muscutt. The three-year-old has been very consistent of late and showed how good he could be as he settled nicely and patiently waited for the leading duo to fall apart.
Then he slipped into the poised position to go home clear. Yorkshire gained valuable points with third and fourth in this contest. However, this success could only be short-lived.
Home soil success for London and the South
The second race showed the depth of the home team. It was first and second for London and the South on home soil as Great Acclaim and Post Rider battled to the line to secure the maximum points. Great Acclaim had to go widest of them all to chase down his team-mate and stick to his task well to defy his penalty, after his win last week at Chepstow for the purple team.
Post Rider did his best to chase down the winner but to no avail with team Ireland claiming valuable points back in third for Billy Loughnane.
28-1 Shock
The North claimed vital points in the third race of the evening as Mick Quinn’s team caused a big upset as Life On The Rocks kept on incredibly well to be a big outside winner. His run from off the pace saw him sweep past God Of Fire (London and the South) to deny his five-timer. The journey from Malton was made worth it for Richard Fahey as he claimed the prize pot.
Well-timed joker from London and the South
Despite Ireland having their first winner of the week in the 7.00 contest with Billy Loughnane giving Bennetot a lovely ride, it was London and the South who emerged on top of the table. Loughnane was patient and didn’t rush his horse along and the perfect gap emerged for him with Scotland also gaining some much-needed points from Love De Vega in second.
This victory gave Loughnane some breathing room at the top of the table as he went 20 points clear of the reigning champion Saffie Osborne. But Matt Chapman’s perfectly timed joker secured double points for third Racingbreaks Ryder and eighth Arctic Thunder sending them to the top of the leaderboard by just under 20 points with Wales and the West snapping at their heels.
Wales and the West come out on top
The Wales and the West ensured their place at the top of the table with wins in the fourth, sixth and seventh races.
In the fourth, two horses in great form battled it out as Lieber Power (London and the South) and Night Breeze (Wales and the West) were caught up in a tussle to the line. Lieber Power was denied his Racing League double, but it was a hat-trick for the winner. It was less than straightforward for the winner as he had to dig deep. This race was crucial as Night Breeze secured maximum points to send Wales and the West into the lead.
These important maximum point hauls didn’t end there as the prominent Toca Madera was not put off by Hayley Turner and Regal Envoy, if anything these played to Benoit De La Sayette’s favour. It was a strong pace to run at and with two furlongs to go Toca Madera dug deep to come out on top and draw clear of Regal Envoy.
The lucky last had Wales and the West clear with the winner and third, Parlando and Sean. Parlando waited for a gap to appear down the rail and have some space. This also allowed Osborne onboard Sean to follow them through which proved vital for the points. Going through the gears like no one else in the field Parlando went clear leaving Scotland, London and the South and the East fighting for the spoils.
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