Marracudja pockets £15k for a trot after Kempton walkover

Marracudja secured the easiest £15,640 of his life in the opening Virgin Bet Silver Bowl Handicap Chase at Kempton.

The extended two-and-a-half-mile heat was conceived as a consolation race for those balloted out of Cheltenham handicaps, but a reduced number of entries at this year's Festival meant only Marracudja was eliminated at the meeting.

Dan Skelton's 10-year-old was therefore the horse to qualify for the race, with Bridget Andrews getting the leg up for his required canter down the course.

Marracudja had only to walk to the furlong marker and canter back past the winning post to take home the first prize.

Andrews said: "I've only ever once before been involved in a walkover, which was at Warwick, and it's a strange situation when you go to the furlong marker and canter back over the line - especially because this horse was very full of himself and he's not the easiest."

Kempton clerk of the course Barney Clifford added: "Since I started clerking here in 1999, this is only the second walkover. The first was in 2002 - it was a chase on the October Sunday meeting brought about by fast ground."

Marracudja had not secured a first prize since December 2019, when he was an impressive winner of the Castleford Chase at Wetherby, before going on to finish third in the Grade One Clarence House Chase a month later.

Pasvolsky strikes for Gordon

Chris Gordon completed an across-the-card double when Pasvolsky stayed on too strongly for Straw Fan Jack in the Virgin Bet Novices' Hurdle at Kempton.

Gordon was elated that minutes earlier his Reallyradical had provided 93-year-old owner Betty Chantler with her first ever winner in the handicap chase at Fontwell.

He said: "While I'm delighted that Pasvolsky has won here, what can you say about Betty, experiencing her first winner into her nineties?

"We came here thinking we might be in the four, because it looked a competitive little race - but the way he's won, I have to hope he hasn't blown his handicap mark.

"The plan was to go on for the Final at Sandown, but we'll have to see."

The Virgin Bet Novices' Limited Handicap Chase turned into a battle between the only two hold-up horses in the field, with Onthefrontfoot beating fellow 6-1 shot Eskendash by a length under Jonathan Burke.

The jockey was full of praise for the Donald McCain-trained winner, and said: "He can operate, and it was quite a thrill once he'd negotiated the first three.

"He's a horse that knows his limits, and his run at Ludlow was a massive education for him. He enjoys his racing and jumping, and is a typical Donald McCain type."

Switch hitter on target

Switch Hitter was prominent throughout and held on with great determination to win the Virgin Bet Silver Plate Handicap Hurdle at Kempton.

Bryony Frost had Paul Nicholls' lightly-raced six-year-old right up with a steady pace almost from the outset, alongside Vive Le Roi.

It proved another canny ride round this track from Frost as Switch Hitter saw off Breffniboy after the last to win by a neck at 11-2 - with favourite Nightboattoclyro having to settle for third, another five lengths back, unable to bridge the gap in the straight after being held up in pursuit of a four-timer this season.

Switch Hitter was returning from a near three-month break, having been well-beaten on his handicap debut over course and distance on Boxing Day.

He was winning for the second time in only five career starts under rules, in this competitive feature race.

The £22,000 contest was a consolation race for those runners that missed the cut at the Cheltenham Festival, and Nicholls was full of praise for the concept.

He said: "It's brilliant that they have races like this, with nice prize money, for horses that weren't able to go to Cheltenham.

"I can't really say enough about the value of these consolation races - he was balloted out of the Coral Cup.

"He will make a lovely chaser next year. He's a point to point winner and will jump fences.

"There's a novice chase here in May that could be on the agenda as he wants good ground, but he could firstly go to Sandown where there's a two-and-a-half-mile handicap hurdle on the last day of the season."