Vintage Clouds puts down Cheltenham marker with fine Doncaster second for Sue Smith team after successful wind op

The veteran grey, owned by the late Trevor Hemmings, was second to Up Helly Aa King following a three-way finish to the Doncaster Virgin Bet Veterans’ Handicap Chase on Town Moor.

Search for Yorkshire ‘wonder horse’ gets underway with £100,000 prize

He won the Ultima Handicap Chase at last year’s Cheltenham Festival at the fifth time of asking – the success under Ryan Mania was one of the most pleasing and popular victories of the entire season – and Vintage Clouds, now 12, holds an entry in next month’s renewal.

The horse, ridden yesterday by Sean Quinlan, also appears to have benefitted from a wind operation to assist his breathing, a procedure that was performed at a similar time last season to great effect.

Hampered at the last, connections will have been encouraged at how Vintage Clouds galloped to the line before going down by less than a length to Up Helly Aa King who was in receipt of 21lb as he completed a double on the day for jockey Conor O’Farrell and trainer Nick Alexander.

The 82 entries for next month’s Ultima include the Paul Nicholls-trained Frodon who has several Grade One wins to his name and is blessed by a great rapport with jockey Bryony Frost.

But the Smith stable – rocked by the tragic loss of Paddy Power Gold Cup victor Midnight Shadow in Doncaster’s Sky Bet Chase – will have been further heartened by the win, in a supporting race yesterday, of Silva Eclipse.

He was ridden to victory by Thomas Willmott, the yard’s conditional jockey, to provide a timely 74th birthday present for Smith.

Willmott remains a promising rider who continues to progress since moving from Lucinda Russell’s yard to West Yorkshire just over a year ago.

In other news, Welsh Grand National winner Iwilldoit, who provided former Gold Cup-winning jockey Sam Thomas with the biggest win of his burgeoning training career, is unlikely to run again this season.

The nine-year-old gained his third victory in four chase starts when beating Highland Hunter in the extended three-and-three-quarter-mile e marathon at Chepstow over Christmas.

Owned by Diamond Racing, Iwilldoit relished the testing conditions in a race where just five of the 20 starters finished.

However, the nine-length success under Stan Sheppard came at a price, as his exertions took their toll.

Thomas said: “He is OK, but it is probably looking like he won’t run again this season. He was very sore after the race - there was nothing seriously wrong, it was just as far as we were concerned it was mission accomplished.

“That was his main target and it could well be that we bring him back and target him for the Welsh National next season, because those are his conditions.”

Another former jockey who has made a successful transition to the training ranks is Johnny Murtagh who has already hit the big time courtesy of Sonnyboyliston winning the Ebor at York last August – and then the Irish St Leger.

Now Murtagh, who retired from a stellar career in the saddle in 2014, hopes Saturday’s Longines Red Sea Turf Handicap in Saudi Arabia can be a springboard for an international campaign.

Murtagh’s first Group One winner as a trainer, Champers Elysees, was a filly he picked up for E28,000 as a yearling and Sonnyboyliston was a similarly-priced steal. He has earned over £660,000 and could secure another notable prize at the King Abdulaziz Racetrack in Riyadh.

“We bought Sonnyboyliston at the yearling sales at Tattersalls for E26,000,” Murtagh said.

“He is by Power, who is a bit underrated, and the dam side is good. Liam Clarke runs the Kildare Racing Club, who own Sonnyboyliston. He knew the breeder and was very keen on this lad going to the sales. They’ve all been very patient with him until things really started to click and now here we are.

“We had a great end to the season with him last year, but he has done really well over the winter and he definitely strengthened up on his break and looks strong.”

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