BetBright Chase
totesport.com
Grade 3 Handicap, Kempton Park
£100,000 added,
5yo plus,
3m, Class 1
Saturday 22nd February 2014

1 Bally Legend 28/1
2 Bury Parade 15/2
3 Tour Des Champs 9/2F
13 ran Distances: 1¼l, 1l, nk
TIME 6m 11.00s (slow by 13.00s)

Bally Legend
© Racehorse Photos

Bally Legend
Kempton's big Saturday card was designed for the leading trainers to run the rule over some Cheltenham Festival hopes, but the feature BetBright Chase allowed a less familiar name to celebrate her biggest success to date.

Caroline Keevil, who is based near Shaftesbury in Dorset, prepared Bally Legend to the minute as he stayed on strongly through the pack to lift the £100,000 Grade Three handicap at odds of 28-1.

Although not an event to attract the likes of Desert Orchid, Rhyme 'n' Reason or Rough Quest any more, the victory for the consistent nine-year-old was of great importance to his connections and there were tears shed in the winner's enclosure.

"I'm still shaking - that's my biggest winner by a long shot," said Keevil.

"I've had him since a wild three-year-old. As a small trainer, you have some highs and lots of lows, but whenever I'm at my lowest ebb, Bally Legend pulls it out of the bag.

"This was the target. He is entered in the Byrne Group Plate, but Cheltenham is only two weeks away and it might be a big greedy.

"The fields around us are lakes and the gallops have been damaged, but days like this help you shrug it off."

Jockey Ian Popham said: "Annacotty winning the Feltham Chase here on Boxing Day was my first Grade One, but this is right up there. I've had a lot of problems with injury (breaking his pelvis twice) but Caroline and Martin Keighley have always stood by me."

Paul Nicholls' Bury Parade was shut off when challenging before the final fence and finished a length and a quarter behind.

His trainer said: "He won't go left-handed but after running well off top-weight there, he would deserve a chance in a Grade One, maybe in the Punchestown Gold Cup."

Free Racing Tips

Betbright Chase (Grade 3)
£100,000 added, 5yo plus, 3m, Class 1
13 ran
Going: Soft (Heavy on bend adjacent to lake)


Horse
Trainer
Jockey
Weight
SP
Distance
1
Bally Legend
Mrs Caroline Keevil
Ian Popham
10st 12lbs
28 - 1
Winner
2
Bury Parade
P F Nicholls
N Fehily
11st 12lbs
15 - 2
1 1/4 length
3
Tour Des Champs
N A Twiston-Davies
Sam Twiston-Davies
10st 1lbs
9 - 2
1 length
4
Midnight Appeal
A King
R Thornton
10st 13lbs
14 - 1
Neck
5
Ardkilly Witness
Dr R D P Newland
L Aspell
10st 10lbs
7 - 1
1 1/2 length
6
Niceonefrankie
Miss V Williams
Aidan Coleman
10st 11lbs
8 - 1
1 1/2 length
7
Planet Of Sound
P J Hobbs
R Johnson
11st 8lbs
10 - 1
12 lengths
8
Standing Ovation
D Pipe
C O'Farrell
10st 7lbs
10 - 1
2 lengths
9
Jump City
P F Nicholls
Harry Derham
10st 6lbs
16 - 1
4 lengths
10
Grandioso
P F Nicholls
D A Jacob
11st 7lbs
7 - 1
10 lengths
11
Baile Anrai
D Skelton
Harry Skelton
10st 6lbs
12 - 1
4 lengths
12
Whats Happening
T R George
P J Brennan
10st 12lbs
16 - 1
3/4 length
PU
Bless The Wings
A King
W Hutchinson
11st 3lbs
16 - 1
       

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