McCoy draws a rare blank
Champion jockey Tony McCoy remained seven short of Richard Dunwoody’s all-time record for a jump jockey of 1,699 winners after drawing a blank from his five rides at Southwell today.
McCoy rode Martin Pipe’s Douceur Des Songes, the 6-4 favourite in the Mike Molloy Novices’ Hurdle, but the combination could only manage third place behind the impressive winner Welsh Border.
Former useful Flat racer Welsh Border was recording his second success of the season and trainer George Prodromou now has the Cheltenham Festival in his sights.
The son of Zafonic made steady progress under Robert Thornton to take up the running approaching the penultimate flight, and he drew away to pass the post with 10 lengths to spare over Roman Candle.
Prodromou, who has had a full licence for four years, was delighted with Welsh Border who was following up a recent win at Market Rasen.
Welsh Border had smart form on the level when trained by Henry Cecil, having been owned and bred by Khalid Abdullah.
East Harling-based Prodromou enthused: “He respects these French style hurdles and jumps them well. He is a serious horse, he is not far off being a Cheltenham horse and we will give him three weeks off now.”
Venetia Williams pulled off a shrewd purchase when snapping up Cotopaxi for 8,000gns at the Doncaster May Sales, and he gained his third success since under Brian Crowley in the Littlewoods Bet Direct Handicap Hurdle.
He took up the running approaching the final flight and drew away to score by a comfortable three lengths from Bernardon with Lord York three-quarters of a length away in third.
Miss Williams said: “We thought he had improved but we did not know by how much so we brought him here – 10 days after we bought him, we ran him at Worcester where he finished fifth to Bernardon and he had 30 lengths and 3lb to make up on him.
“We got him from Michael Cunningham and we bought another four at Doncaster last week – if they do half as good at he has then we will be delighted.”
They do not come any tougher than Kenny Johnson, and his strength and determination were again to the fore when he forced the Norman Mason owned and trained Ulusaba, who carried 1lb overweight, past Geomar on the run-in to win the betdirect.co.uk Novices’ Handicap by half a length.
Johnson can rightly claim that the fates have not always been on his side, and he said with a wry smile: “Nearly every season I have had a bad injury and if I had been a horse I think they would have put me down by now!
“Most recently I broke a leg, and then I shattered the knuckle of my ring finger – and though that might not seem much, a lot of little bones were broken and I was out for six weeks.”
He went on: “But all thanks to Mr Mason and his assistant Richard Guest, they have been great to me and stuck by me – I am 33 now but I am still learning from Richard all the time.
“I ride out for them whenever I can, and also of course for my father Robert who has a public licence and 13 horses in training at the moment – and we are looking for more.”
Jeff King sent out a winner on the Flat last week, and was on the mark again here when Tudor King picked up the winning thread in the Bet Direct ‘Today’s Best Bet’ Handicap Chase, helped by a good ride from Noel Fehily.
King’s son David said: “Last season our horses were not running as well as they could, we had them blood tested but nothing really showed and we could never put a finger on it.
“Tudor King had a bit of a cough, but he has come back to his old form now and will keep running through the summer – he likes the ground as firm as you can get it.”
