Top Benefit knows the stabling block at Towcester like he knows his own back yard in Kings Sutton and Richard Harper’s recent Fontwell winner could be returning to the Northants track on Monday evening.
Harper’s 11 year-old grey Beneficial gelding held on for a richly deserved success in Sussex last Friday night, getting the verdict by a fast dwindling short head from Might as Well at the end of a 3m 2 1/2f handicap chase, in the hands of James Banks.
Although this was only Top Benefit’s second ever win in 31 starts under Rules he has run an astonishing seven times at Towcester this season, all bar one of them over fences, finishing third on three occasions as well as a fourth.
Harper has only three horses at his Home Farm base on the county border with Oxfordshire and is anxious to strike again while the horse is in good form.
He said: “Top Benefit has been consistent all season.
“He was brought down by Kinkeel at Towcester in the week before Christmas when he would have finished second (to Topaze Collonges) and that is just typical as Kinkeel hadn’t fallen for eight years!”
He added: “We are up to three horses in the yard now so perhaps I will have to build some more stables!”
Top Benefit holds entries in the opening Haygain Hay Steamers Clean Healthy Forage Amateur Riders’ Handicap Hurdle at 5.25pm as well as the following Enjoy Your Retirement Stuart Plaskow Handicap Chase over 3m at 6.00pm.
There should be plenty of interest in the opener with local rider Gina Swan partnering the Samizdat out of John Upson’s yard.
The ten year-old has been knocking on the door of late and has been placed on his last two starts at Market Rasen and Wetherby although he tends to run most of his races at the minimum trip and might be stretched by the extra distance.
The Towcester Tea Rooms 10th Anniversary Mares’ Maiden Hurdle over 2m 5f takes place at 7.30pm and this can fall to another local trainer in the form of Ben Case, who fields Bebinn.
Bebinn has Towcester course and distance form under her belt as she showed when chasing home Va’ Vite, trained by Culworth neighbour Tony Middleton, in March.
Middleton also looks likely to feature on the radar during the evening, having made entries for recent Towcester runner-up Bob Lewis, Pipe Banner and Fitandproperjob.