racing_news/

According To Pete Prevails in Peter Marsh Slog
21/01/12

1 According To Pete 9/1
2 Pearlysteps 6/1
3 Consigliere 10/1
11 ran Distances: 3½l, ¾l, 23l
TIME 6m 24.40s (slow by 33.40s)

According To Pete could be bound for the John Smith's Grand National after grinding out victory in the Peter Marsh Chase at Haydock.

According To Pete
© Grossick Racing Photography

Following up his success in the Rowland Meyrick Chase at Wetherby on Boxing Day, Malcolm Jefferson's 11-year-old (9-1) continues to be in the form of his life.

The Sawyer attempted to make all but dropped away with a mile to run, where 3lb claimer Harry Haynes sent According To Pete into the lead. Pearlysteps and Consigliere were the only other two in with a chance as the conditions took their toll, but According To Pete went on to score by three and a half lengths.

Haynes said: "He jumped brilliantly and never put a foot wrong. He's finished very tired - he walked home after the last - but he had enough in him to keep going."

Jefferson added: "I'll give him an entry in the Grand National, but I don't know if I'll bring him back here next month (for the Grand National Trial). He had a hard-enough race here and I want him fresh and well. If he does have one more run before Aintree it might be in an easier race.

"He was in great heart before he went to Wetherby and he's been fantastic ever since. He's always been a great horse for us. I'm sure he'll have the heart for Aintree."

Nicky Henderson's Giorgio Quercus (7-2) battled on bravely to land the concluding Betfair Graduation Chase under Andrew Tinkler.

Position	Horse Trainer	Jockey Weight	Starting Price Beaten Distance
1	According To Pete J M Jefferson	Harry Haynes 11st 5lbs	9 - 1 Winner
2	Pearlysteps H D Daly	A Tinkler 11st 3lbs	6 - 1 3 1/2 lengths
3	Consigliere D Pipe	T Scudamore 11st 8lbs	10 - 1 3/4 length
4	The Sawyer R H Buckler	Nathan Sweeney 10st 8lbs	7 - 1 23 lengths
5	Take The Breeze P F Nicholls	Harry Derham 11st 5lbs	7 - 1 1 length
6	Oscar Gogo Evan Williams	Adam Wedge 11st 0lbs	14 - 1 16 lengths
PulledUp	Crescent Island N A Twiston-Davies	J M Maguire 11st 10lbs	25 - 1
PulledUp	Mon Mome Miss V Williams	Aidan Coleman 11st 8lbs	8 - 1
PulledUp	Mount Oscar C L Tizzard	P J Brennan 11st 8lbs	20 - 1
Fell	Bold Ransom K G Reveley	G Lee 10st 4lbs	4 - 1
Fell	King Fontaine J M Jefferson	D C Costello 10st 4lbs	8 - 1

HISTORY OF THE PETER MARSH CHASE

The Peter Marsh Chase was inaugurated in 1981 and this limited handicap has grown into one of the highlights of the season at Haydock Park, regularly attracting the very best staying chasers.

Four Cheltenham Gold Cup winners have taken the three-mile contest prior to going on to success at Prestbury Park, while there has also been a Grand National winner and a whole host of other top-class performers among the 20 successful horses in the 22 runnings to date.

Little Owl in 1981 was the first winner of the Peter Marsh Chase and went on to victory in the Cheltenham Gold Cup that season for trainer Peter Easterby and amateur rider Jim Wilson.

A year later the race was won by Bregawn, who captured the Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1983, when he headed Michael Dickinson’s remarkable first five horses home in chasing’s Blue Riband. In fifth place in the 1983 Cheltenham Gold Cup was Ashley House, victorious in the Peter Marsh Chase earlier the same year.

Unfortunately, frost intervened in both 1984 and 1985 and it was not until 1986 that the Peter Marsh Chase was run again, when the David Elsworth-trained Combs Ditch achieved success. Combs Ditch was a high class if somewhat enigmatic performer, who was twice beaten in a photo finish for Kempton’s King George VI Chase.

Arthur Stephenson landed the 1987 renewal with The Thinker, who progressed through the ranks from handicap company to that success and victory in the same year’s Cheltenham Gold Cup. The Thinker ran a fine race to finish third under 11st 10lb in the 1989 Grand National.

The next renewal of the Peter Marsh Chase was in 1989 when the Toby Balding-trained Bishops Yarn came home 30 lengths clear of Cavvies Clown to add to his previous success in the 1987 Glen International Gold Cup at Cheltenham.

Bishops Yarn turned out again for the 1990 Peter Marsh Chase but was unable to cope with John Upson’s high-class young chaser Nick The Brief, who scored by half a length. Nick The Brief followed up in Ireland’s top chase, the Vincent O’Brien Irish Gold Cup at Leopardstown, where he lowered the colours of the mighty Carvill’s Hill and went on to win the Irish event (now the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup) again in 1991.

Twin Oaks was a star turn around Haydock Park, winning eight times in total at the course. His victory in the 1992 Peter Marsh Chase was one of his most emphatic as he stayed on resolutely to defeat Gold Options by five lengths.

Yet another future Cheltenham Gold Cup winner was to land the 1993 renewal, when Peter Beaumont’s Jodami came home two lengths clear of Run For Free. He followed up on his Peter Marsh Chase victory in the 1993 Cheltenham Gold Cup and also finished second in that contest in 1994. He was also successful in three Hennessy Cognac Gold Cups at Leopardstown.

Jodami won the Peter Marsh Chase for the second time four years later in 1997 at the age of 12, when he prevailed by a neck from Unguided Missile with Avro Anson half a length back in third in a thrilling finish.

Following Nick The Brief’s success in 1990, John Upson recorded a second Peter Marsh Chase victory with Zeta’s Lad in 1994, while in 1995 Earth Summit made light of the heavy ground to win from 11lb out of the handicap. Three years later Earth Summit recorded another success on his favoured going - this time in the Grand National at Aintree.

Scotton Banks gave trainer Peter Easterby one of the last major successes of his long and distinguished career when landing the 1996 race, defeating Jenny Pitman’s duo of Smith’s Band and the former Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Garrison Savannah. Scotton Banks landed the Martell Cup Chase (now the John Smith’s Bowl) at Aintree the same season.

Two real Haydock Park specialists dominated the three renewals from 1998. General Wolfe, a four-time winner at the course, won his first Peter Marsh Chase when trained by the late Captain Tim Forster in 1998 and followed up a year later for Venetia Williams. In fact, General Wolfe’s two victories followed on from one another - his 1998 win was his last start of the season while his 1999 triumph came on his seasonal reappearance.

In 2000 another Haydock Park hero, The Last Fling, put up one of his trademark gritty displays to deny Bobby Grant by three quarters of a length. The Last Fling won four times in total at Haydock Park, with his richest success coming in the 2000 De Vere Gold Cup (now the Red Square Vodka Gold Cup).

Richard Guest gave a typically inspired ride when guiding Red Striker to victory in 2002, surviving a bad blunder at the eighth fence. Guest had won the Peter Marsh Chase 13 years earlier aboard Bishops Yarn.

The value of the Peter Marsh Chase as a trial for the Cheltenham Gold Cup was proved once again in 2003 when the Ferdy Murphy-trained Trucker’s Tavern was successful at Haydock Park prior to finishing second to the mighty Best Mate in the Cheltenham championship event.

Four years ago Artic Jack defeated Kingscliff by 13 lengths to give trainer Sue Smith and owner Trevor Hemmings their second success, following on from The Last Fling four years beforehand. Kingscliff subsequently proved himself a performer of the highest class, with his victory in the 2005 Grade One Betfair Chase at Haydock Park.

The 2005 renewal saw a smooth performance from the Howard Johnson-trained Lord Transcend, who came home 10 lengths clear of French raider First Gold.

There was a shock victory in 2006 as Ebony Light defied being 22lb out of the handicap and his 33/1 starting price to score in ready fashion. Trained by Ginger McCain, best known for handling the incomparable three-time Grand National winner Red Rum, Ebony Light produced a superb jumping performance under talented conditional jockey Stephen Craine, coming home nine lengths clear of Kingscliff.

In 2007, The Outlier scored by 12 lengths from Turpin Green, who subsequently finished third in the totesport Gold Cup at Cheltenham behind Kauto Star.

PETER MARSH CHASE ROLL OF HONOUR

YEAR HORSE AGE/WT OWNER TRAINER JOCKEY SP

2011 no race
2010 Our Vic 12-11-03 D A Johnson David Pipe Danny Cook
2009 Cloudy Lane 7-11-10 Trevor Hemmings Donald McCain, Jr. Jason Maguire
2008 no race
2007 THE OUTLIER 9-10-03 P J Murphy Venetia Williams Paul O’Neill 8/1
2006 EBONY LIGHT 10-9-13 Roger Bellamy Ginger McCain Stephen Craine 33/1
2005 LORD TRANSCEND 8-10-04 Andrea & Graham Wylie Howard Johnson Graham Lee 9/4F
2004 ARCTIC JACK 8-10-06 Trevor Hemmings Sue Smith Dominic Elsworth 6/1
2003 TRUCKERS TAVERN 8-10-09 Margaret Scholey Ferdy Murphy Davy Russell 9/2
2002 RED STRIKER 8-11-01 Norman Mason Norman Mason Richard Guest 8/1
2001 Meeting abandoned due to frost
2000 THE LAST FLING 10-10-12 Trevor Hemmings Sue Smith Seamus Durack 11/2
1999 GENERAL WOLFE 10-10-12 The Winning Line Venetia Williams Norman Williamson 4/1
1998 GENERAL WOLFE 9-10-10 Winning Line Racing Ltd Tim Forster Norman Williamson 11/2
1997 JODAMI 12-11-10 John Yeadon Peter Beaumont Norman Williamson 9/2
1996 SCOTTON BANKS 7-11-06 Ian Bray Peter Easterby Russ Garritty 15/8F
1995 EARTH SUMMIT 7-10-04 The Summit Partnership Nigel Twiston-Davies Tom Jenks 7/1
1994 ZETA’S LAD 11-10-10 Andrew Cohen John Upson Robbie Supple 5/1
1993 JODAMI 8-11-02 John Yeadon Peter Beaumont Mark Dwyer 5/4F
1992 TWIN OAKS 12-11-10 John Moreton Gordon Richards Neale Doughty 5/4F
1991 Meeting abandoned due to frost
1990 NICK THE BRIEF 8-10-09 John Upson John Upson Martin Lynch 15/8F
1989 BISHOPS YARN 10-10-12 British Thoroughbred R & B Toby Balding Richard Guest 13/2
1988 Meeting abandoned due to snow
1987 THE THINKER 9-11-10 T P M McDonagh Ltd Arthur Stephenson Ridley Lamb 9/2
1986 COMBS DITCH 10-11-08 Jim Tory David Elsworth Colin Brown 3/1
1985 Meeting abandoned due to frost
1984 Meeting abandoned due to frost
1983 ASHLEY HOUSE 9-10-07 J McLoughlin Michael Dickinson Robert Earnshaw 11/8F
1982 BREGAWN 8-10-07 James Kennelly Michael Dickinson Robert Earnshaw 11/2
1981 LITTLE OWL 7-11-03 Robin Wilson Peter Easterby Mr Jim Wilson 4/6F