Impressive Ballynagour catches rivals cold in Warwick feature

Little Josh headed the weights for the £30,000 Budbroke Chase over two-and-a-half miles but this former winner of the Paddy Power Gold Cup looks to have his best days behind him as he struggled from halfway and trailed in a long way behind easy winner Ballynagour.

Tom Scudamore and Ballynagour were full of running entering the home straight and were hardly out of a canter to come home ten lengths clear of Niceonefrankie and he may now go to the Cheltenham Festival where he has three possible targets.

The win completed a double for Scudamore and trainer David Pipe, as they had got punters off to the best possible start when 1-2 favourite Broadway Buffalo made all the running to beat stable companion I Shot The Sheriff in the opening Doombar Festival/EBF “National Hunt” Novices’ Hurdle.

Punters followed up with another strike on the bookies in the second, as the well-backed joint market leader Gizzit came to challenge Goochypoochyprader at the last flight and run out a comfortable winner for the Devon stable of Karen George and jockey James Cowley.

Al Alfa put in an exhibition round of jumping to take the novices’ chase in the hands of Tom O’Brien. Winner of an Irish point-to-point, Al Afra failed to win over hurdles, but it would be a surprise if he did not follow-up this win over fences.

The closest finish of the day came in the longest race, the Ken Muir Memorial Handicap Chase, when just half a length separated Rebeccas Choice and Pettifour after a stamina-sapping three miles and five furlong trip.

Last of seven in a hurdle race at Haydock Park the previous Saturday, Pettifour looked to have bounced back to form when leading over the last fence but Christian Williams galvanized Rebeccas Choice on the run-in and the pair got up to lead just before the line.