Orphan strikes for in-form team
Karl Burke’s rich vein of form continued when he saddled bottom-weight Orphan to win the £50,000 totesport.com Stakes at Ripon today.
The Middleham trainer made a slow start to the season, but he now has his string in top gear.
He had sent out eight winners in the last fortnight and he added to that tally when Dale Gibson drove the 20-1 shot home by a neck from Beckermet with Viking Spirit, the 9-4 favourite, a length away in third.
Nine of the 19 runners raced on the far side and it soon became clear they had the call over their rivals on the stand rail.
The market leader went on at the furlong pole but was soon challenged and overtaken by Orphan, who then had to dig deep to hold the fast-finishing runner-up.
“Things are going well and long may it carry on – and if it carries on until Wednesday I’ll be happy,” Burke said, referring to Clare Hills, who is due to run in the Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot at York.
He added: “Dale gave Orphan a cracking ride – he’s worth every pound.
“The horse went down like a crab. He’s a lovely horse and a horse for the future, but he does want a bit of cut. He’s a big, sloppy horse going down but in a race he carries himself well.
“Dale said he only just got away with this fast ground.
“That’s a nice prize to sit on, so we don’t have to make any plans.”
Gibson added: “That’s my biggest prize this year and my first winner for Karl.
“It’s nice to get on a live horse in a handicap with minimum weight because it’s only in these heritage handicaps that jockeys round about 8st have a chance to win a big race. The rest of the time they don’t get in.
“I was very keen to get on the horse because I thought he was unlucky at Hamilton last time.”
Ace Of Hearts responded to a strong ride from John Egan to land the totescoop6 Handicap and give Newmarket trainer Chris Wall a welcome boost.
The 100-30 favourite was always handy before going on with three of the nine furlongs left to go.
Ace Of Hearts was strongly pressed throughout the final quarter of a mile by last year’s winner Krugerrand, but he would not be denied and held on by a neck.
Wall said: “That was needed. We’ve had a bit of coughing, scoping dirty, that sort of thing and we’ve just had to be patient.
“We aren’t firing on all cylinders yet but it’s just nice to poke a winner in and take the pressure off.
“We’ve sort of turned the corner this week. We had a couple run second and third and this old boy has been knocking on the door, so he wasn’t winning out of turn.
“John has given him a great ride. Once he got him in behind the leader he relaxed pretty well.
“We’ve nothing in mind for him. He’s been rather busy recently and there aren’t any races for him until the end of the month.”
Clipperdown finished fast and late to take the toteplacepot Handicap and provide his trainer, Walter Swinburn, with his first winner at the course.
Nevada Desert looked all set to score when he hit the front over a furlong out but Darryll Holland on Clipperdown had other ideas.
He conjured a powerful late charge out of the 12-1 shot and Swinburn’s gelding got up right on the line to win by a short head.
Clipperdown was having his first race for 255 days and the trainer said: “He’s been held up with one thing and another. He was ready to run at the beginning of May but he scoped badly and we just had to back off him a little.
“We’ve always quite liked him and we were hopeful today.
“We’ve nothing in mind for him, we are just pleased to get him going and now we can sit down and try and come up with something.”
It was the turn of favourite-backers to strike in the toteexacta Maiden Fillies’ Stakes when 11-4 chance Diamond Circle was brought with a well-timed run by Paul Hanagan to beat Bazelle by a length and a quarter.
Geoff Snook, representing winning trainer Barry Hills, said: “She didn’t like the soft ground when she ran at Yarmouth last year but it was good experience for her.
“Today the going was right, the 10-furlong trip was right and she won well enough in the end after she got her act together.”
