Darlan death mars Ruby win

Darlan, a leading contender for the Champion Hurdle, suffered a fatal fall at Doncaster on what should have been his final outing before the Cheltenham Festival.

Lining up in the Listed 32Red Hurdle as an even-money favourite, Darlan looked a likely winner as he cruised to the last in the hands of Tony McCoy.

However, the Nicky Henderson-trained runner met the hurdle all wrong and crashed to the ground.