Coral Scottish Champion Hurdle |
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| Grade 2, Limited Handicap, Ayr 14:20 £100,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 2m, Class 1  |
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1 Dedicated Hero 12/1
2
Captain Hugo 7/2
3
Ooh Betty 10/1
8 ran NR: Gibbs Island, Tellherthename (unsuitable ground)
Distances: 5l, 1l, ½l Time: 4m 2.53s (slow by 20.53s)
One for the home team! 🏴
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 18, 2026
Dedicated Hero lands a dramatic renewal of the Scottish Champion Hurdle for the @LambdenRacing team.
Thankfully, Tutti Quanti and Harry Cobden are both on their feet 🙏@Coral | @ayrracecourse pic.twitter.com/CuuTkoYHVS
Dedicated Hero provided a popular local success, capitalising on a pivotal late incident to strike decisively for Sandy Thomson.
The complexion of the race shifted markedly at the second-last flight, where leader and top-weight Tutti Quanti crashed out, in turn badly hampering All In You, who had been travelling strongly at the time and looked poised to play a major role.
In the aftermath, Dedicated Hero, racing from 6lb out of the handicap, was left in command and made full use of the opportunity. The 12-1 chance kept on strongly to pull five lengths clear of Captain Hugo, sealing a victory that suggested a return to something like his best form.
Once a Grade Two-winning novice, he had endured a patchy campaign, but a recent wind operation appears to have reignited his fortunes, with this success making it two from two since the procedure.
“That’s not a bad way to get my 80th winner of the season, I’m delighted,” said winning rider Danny McMenamin.
“I got a lovely position behind Harry (Cobden on Tutti Quanti) for most of the way. We were desperate for the rain as ideally he wants further, but with the ground the way it was it all worked out.”
Thomson said: “He’s had such an in-and-out season and when he got brought down at Musselburgh over fences we were all in despair, but had that not happened we probably wouldn’t be here today.
“He was a short price in-running in the Morebattle but his wind caught him out, we had that seen to and he loves this soft ground.
“I was confident we’d have won whatever else happened.”
Coral Scottish Champion Hurdle
£100,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 2m, Class 1
8 ran
Going: Heavy
