Mate pulled up on return

Best Mate’s much-anticipated racecourse return saw him pulled up in the William Hill Haldon Gold Cup at Exeter.

Paul Carberry tracked the leader Ashley Brook for the first half of the race on Henrietta Knight’s stable star but he started to nudge the horse on and began to ease him in the home straight.

The Grade Two contest went to the Philip Hobbs-trained Monkerhostin (10-1), who romped away under Richard Johnson to a comfortable four-length success over Kauto Star.