County jockey Johnny Bailey posted a home double at the Pytchley meeting at Guilsborough on Sunday as all seven favourites obliged.
Bailey’s mounts Gunmoney (Confined) and Proximo (Restricted) and Nico de Boinville’s Inner Drive and Classic Drive (maiden divisions) shared riding honours in front of a sizeable crowd .
Yet while Bailey might not match de Boinville’s boast of being Sprinter Scare’s work rider on the Nicky Henderson home gallops, his performances earned rave reviews as he enhanced a growing reputation, to take his season’s tally to nine.
Trainer Stuart Morris, who saw his Duke Of Kentford finish third to the front running Gunmoney before putting up the pilot to score a second victory of the season on Proximo for Judy Wilson, said: “Johnny has improved and matured as well as using his head and listening as well.”
Most were agreed Bailey gave Proximo what is generally defined as a contrastingly ‘cool ride’ to win from Toby Hunt’s Nightcap Jack.
Yet simply by passing the post first, you can quickly silence any mouthy objections.
The result was a welcome one for Holcot owner Wilson whose Nicky Henderson-trained Tistory had disappointed connections at Aintree in a bumper the previous day.
Proximo has now won twice this season and the former Charlie Brooks trained gelding has some useful form stored away in his locker.
On his racecourse debut at Warwick in November 2011 he finished third of 16 behind The New One.
That Nigel Twiston-Davies runner is now being loudly barked as a chief candidate for next year’s Champion Hurdle.
De Boinville’s mounts should prove of broader significance as both looked highly talented prospects for the future.
Both runners were saddled by Newmarket trainer Don Cantillon, whose shrewd reputation is widely respected within the sport.
Both of his winners were unheralded swans in the race card analysis which read: ‘Unraced under any rules in GB/Ireland and abroad’.
Yet as Classic Drive (the most impressive of the pair) sped to complete the double, the words of commentator Iain MacKenzie rang out: ‘Watch out for this horse if he shows up in the Punchestown bumper!’
This was a contest Cantillon won last year with Grand Jesture, and a similar punt at the ring could be forthcoming.
The Members’ race at Guilsborough inevitably throws up a heart-warming county tale and this year was no exception with Pennytino initiating a double for Gerald Bailey’s yard and jockey Tom McClory, to give that jockey his first winner of the season.
Pennytino is owned and was bred by Richard Bowers, the man who once ran The Elms Stud at Denton, and who spent three weeks in hospital right up to the weekend.
The prize was collected by Bowers’ wife Meg.
So it was a case of smiles all round as the 11 year-old held off the fast-finishing Zacharova, which had won the race last year.
The classy Palypso de Creek was a warm order to land the Ladies Open, and duly did so under Claire Hart while equally dominant in the market was Pauline Harkin’s Doctor Kingsley, which followed up his fourth in the Cheltenham Fox Hunter’s Chase with victory under Peter Mann in the Men’s Open.
The recently cancelled Woodland Pytchley Hunt meeting at Dingley has been rearranged for Saturday June 8, while that course also stages action on April 28, with the Fernie fixture.
Meanwhile, an extra point fixture has been sanctioned for Whitfield near Brackley, on Sunday June 9.