THE SHOWCAS E 23-24 OCTOBER 2020
THE WA I T I S OVE R
After a long summer we all begin to crave those winter nights with the fire roaring and your gloves defrosting on the stove after a day at the races. The weather turning can only mean one thing… Jump racing is back
T he last weekend in October the season. Champion trainers, jockeys and owners will travel to the place we like to call home for a shot at glory over the meeting. Although this year is going to look a little different, with no crowds present to roar the racing stars home, one thing is for sure, the magic of Cheltenham is still around. The rain didn’t dampen the spirits of racegoers as they flooded through the gates on Day One in 2019. The opening meeting of the season has a local feel, with racecourse friends and neighbours travelling to Prestbury Park welcomes The Showcase meeting. Two days of quality Jump racing action, marking the ‘real’ start to
lovely for him to come back. He won first time out for us a few years ago, missing all last season through a back injury, and he has just done brilliant today. The owners have been so patient, anyone else could have given up on him.” Fergal’s third and final winner of the day came in the last race, with Connor Brace landing the Matchbook Betting Exchange Podcast Conditional Jockeys’ Handicap Hurdle aboard 5/2 favourite Benny’s Bridge. Under a very cool ride from Connor, the pair finished an impressive eight lengths clear of the field. Fergal said of his two younger jockeys, both celebrating their first Cheltenham successes: “Paddy walked the track with Liam and Connor this morning and told
to get the Jump racing season started ‘properly’. Local trainers always receive a fantastic reaction, and the crowds around the famous Parade Ring light up, and October 2019 was no different. Local trainer Fergal O’Brien was on fire as he clocked up a treble courtesy of Champagne Well, who went off the 13/8 favourite under Paddy Brennan in the Ballymore Novices’ Hurdle. The FOB Racing team then had to wait until the penultimate race of the day, the Cheltenham Business Club Amateur Riders’ Handicap Chase, for young Liam Harrison and Petite Power. This was the horse’s first day back on the track since 2018 having missed the previous season with a back injury. Fergal said: “It was
16 KALENDAR
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