It's been a very satisfactory weekend for Barbury's Alan King. In fact, I think Alan would settle for this sort of start to the month of November any year. A double on Saturday at Wincanton, topped by a 2 1/4l length second in the Badger Beer Chase were the icing on the cake of an excellent week that saw 5 winners overall across both codes of the sport.
What can one say about a star like Sceau Royal? He is a standing dish in the Unibet Elite Hurdle at this fixture, having now won the race three times. He first appeared in it as a four year old in 2016, but came back to win again as an eight year old last year, and again yesterday. This looked his most accomplished performance in the race yet, leading two out and winning well by 5 1/2l. A stable full of horses of this calibre would have any trainer purring.
The Badger Beer Chase now ranks among Jump racing's longest sponsorships with the exit of Royal & SunAlliance, and without fail produces a cracker. King's Potterman, awarded the bet365 Chase at Sandown on the disqualification of Enrilo in the Spring, has another big chase in him yet, but hit the bar once again in this race, this time beaten 2 1/4l by Nigel Twiston-Davies' Rocco. Last year, he was a short head second to El Presente.
Wincanton is Point-to-Point heartland, and Saturday was a day to remember fondly one of the sport's greats in trainer Richard Barber, who died in June at the age of 77. Trainer of over 1,000 winners between the flags, Barber had a terrific eye for a horse, and an unsentimental attitude to his riders, although he nurtured several to championships of their own, Will Biddick and Polly Gundry among them.
Of course, the Barber family were also instrumental in helping Paul Nicholls to grow his training career and make the market town of Shepton Mallet a byword for steeplechase excellence too. So it was no surprise to see Nicholls keen to win the memorial race in his mentor's name on Saturday, with two of the seven runners.
The prize however, wasn't destined to stay in Somerset. Wynn House provided King with the second leg of a double, with stable companion Hotter Than Hell second, to defy the challenge of the West Country to rally round one of their own.
The name Barber however did get on the scoresheet for the day. Grandson Jack combined with Nick Scholfield to win the closing bumper with Norton Hill for a just result.
It's been a very satisfactory weekend for Barbury's Alan King. In fact, I think Alan would settle for this sort of start to the month of November any year. A double on Saturday at Wincanton, topped by a 2 1/4l length second in the Badger Beer Chase were the icing on the cake of an excellent week that saw 5 winners overall across both codes of the sport.
What can one say about a star like Sceau Royal? He is a standing dish in the Unibet Elite Hurdle at this fixture, having now won the race three times. He first appeared in it as a four year old in 2016, but came back to win again as an eight year old last year, and again yesterday. This looked his most accomplished performance in the race yet, leading two out and winning well by 5 1/2l. A stable full of horses of this calibre would have any trainer purring.
The Badger Beer Chase now ranks among Jump racing's longest sponsorships with the exit of Royal & SunAlliance, and without fail produces a cracker. King's Potterman, awarded the bet365 Chase at Sandown on the disqualification of Enrilo in the Spring, has another big chase in him yet, but hit the bar once again in this race, this time beaten 2 1/4l by Nigel Twiston-Davies' Rocco. Last year, he was a short head second to El Presente.
Wincanton is Point-to-Point heartland, and Saturday was a day to remember fondly one of the sport's greats in trainer Richard Barber, who died in June at the age of 77. Trainer of over 1,000 winners between the flags, Barber had a terrific eye for a horse, and an unsentimental attitude to his riders, although he nurtured several to championships of their own, Will Biddick and Polly Gundry among them.
Of course, the Barber family were also instrumental in helping Paul Nicholls to grow his training career and make the market town of Shepton Mallet a byword for steeplechase excellence too. So it was no surprise to see Nicholls keen to win the memorial race in his mentor's name on Saturday, with two of the seven runners.
The prize however, wasn't destined to stay in Somerset. Wynn House provided King with the second leg of a double, with stable companion Hotter Than Hell second, to defy the challenge of the West Country to rally round one of their own.
The name Barber however did get on the scoresheet for the day. Grandson Jack combined with Nick Scholfield to win the closing bumper with Norton Hill for a just result.
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