Double Rush Heads One-two For Charlie Hills At HQ

Double Rush led home one-two for fitness instructor Charlie Hills in the curtain-raising bet365 Handicap on Craven Stakes day at Newmarket.


A winner on the all-weather at Wolverhampton little over a fortnight earlier, Double Rush was a 9-4 to act on his handicap debut in the hands of Jason Watson and overcame stablemate Bob Mali by a length and a quarter.


Hills said of the winner: "He won his newbie extremely well in an excellent time at Wolverhampton and I think he's going to be a good, enhancing three-year-old through the season.


"A few of our horses weren't right last season, so he had a good mark really. He probably didn't handle the track that well today and a flatter track will fit him much better.


"There's a valuable handicap at York a week approximately before Royal Ascot and we might intend him for that, however we'll see how he enhances and take it step by step."


John and Thady Gosden quickly followed up their win in the function Craven Stakes by saddling Swiss Lightning (2-1 preferred) to take the Rossdales Maiden Fillies' Stakes in figured out style.


Double Rush winning the opening race at Newmarket on Wednesday (Mike Egerton/PA)


Making just her second start, the Lordship Stud stud-owned child of Night Of Thunder revealed a remarkable mindset to come out on top in a thrilling three-way finish.


"We provided her an experience of the racecourse at the end of in 2015, however it was heavy ground and she didn't like it, she was a bit weak and the jockey cared for her and she has succeeded today as it wasn't the plan and there was no rate, it was an untidy race - she looked a bit chewy early on however settled into it.


"That was over seven and it quite felt like we should remain at 7 and don't return to six and not increase to a mile, so we'll have a great look. I would not desire to rush her back from that as she's had a difficult sufficient race, however you have actually got to enjoy with her.


"She revealed a great attitude due to the fact that she hit the front, then wasn't sure what she was meant to be doing, however she didn't give up. Ryan (Moore, on Richard Hannon's runner-up Stellenbosch) had the rail and that's a huge benefit with these inexperienced fillies."


Stallion Ten Sovereigns had the one-two in the concluding Watch Live Racing At bet365 Handicap as Harry Charlton's Ten Pounds (5-1) saw off Tom Clover's 5-4 preferred Fifty Nifty in the hands of Trevor Whelan.