Shoelees Kavi strikes for Earle
Always up with the pace, the 15-8 favourite stuck to his guns to win by a neck, with Ezz Elkheil keeping the gambled-on Nantucket Sound out of second place by a head.
Earle believes the improvement in Kavi is down to him running without shoes.
“It is my aim to train and run all my horses without shoes. Kavi certainly had the handbrake on because he was feeling his legs, but since we took the shoes off, he has gone all the way,” said the Wiltshire trainer.
The five-year-old had frustrated his trainer when an unlucky runner-up at Lingfield on Saturday.
“He got into trouble from the start, but when he came back he was hardly blowing, so I decided to bring him here,” added Earle.
However, there was a sting in the tail for winning jockey Oscar Urbina, who was found guilty of using his whip with excessive frequency and was suspended for two days (March 12-13).
Friends Hope and Chief Dipper had earlier both justified strong market support.
Friends Hope came late and fast to snatch the ITV Interactive Betting And Gaming Fillies’ Handicap.
Backed from an opening show of 7-1 into a starting price of 9-2, Friends Hope only got up in the final strides to beat Endless Peace by a neck.
She was a good eight lengths off the pace turning for home and was short of racing room, but Chris Catlin managed to find a gap and swooped on the outside.
Owner Michael Wiley was celebrating, having made the trip from his Dublin home to watch the filly run.
Catlin went on to complete a double when Savile’s Delight (5-1) made all to win the second division of the Play Gameon And Win Cash On ITV Handicap.
But he left the track with a four-day ban (March 12-13 and 15-16) after being found guilty of using his whip with excessive force on Bubbling Fun in the Champions League Betting On ITV Classified Stakes.
John Egan was the jockey to follow at Lingfield as he notched a double with Confuzed (9-1) and Indian Blaze (3-1).
The 11-year-old Indian Blaze went out on a high as he was immediately retired by owner Irene Clifford, who has had him since he was a yearling, after winning the Littlewoods Pools On 0800 500 000 Banded Stakes.
