Murtagh snatches Ascot win on Molcon

Johnny Murtagh snatched a last-gasp victory on Molcon in the Sodexho Handicap at Ascot today.

Ask The Clerk looked to have just got the measure of long-time leader Muy Bien when Molcon mugged them both with a late thrust on the outside in the dying strides.

The Neville Callaghan-trained three-year-old, a 15-2 chance, won by half a length from Ask The Clerk (20-1), with Muy Bien (10-1) a neck back in third.

Said the Newmarket trainer: “He’s got a big heart. He acts on fast ground and we were hopeful he would go on this (soft).

“Johnny said he thought they had gone too quickly in front, and he was staying on at the finish as the others got tired.”