Topham Chase Result: Always Waining lands remarkable hat-trick

News / Timeform / 13 April 2012 / Leave a Comment

Peter Bowen's Always Waining

"He's absolutely amazing. He gives everyone who rides him a great spin around here..."

Peter Bowen's Always Waining achieved an amazing feat at Aintree on Friday, winning his third Topham Chase in succession...

The 11-year-old rarely shows much sparkle for the majority of the season but come Aintree in April, the veteran springs to life.

Once again jumping the with aplomb, the 11-1 chance was one of a small group vying for the lead rounding the turn for home and Fistral Beach looked to be travelling strongest, but it was Always Waining who got away from the final fence quickest and he ran on strongly to score by four and a half lengths.

Chance Du Roy, who touched an in-running low of [1.9] grabbed the runner-up spot from Fistral Beach (went as low as [1.66]), with Aimigayle taking fourth.

Winning jockey Tom O'Brien said: "He's absolutely amazing. He gives everyone who rides him a great spin around here and I'm delighted with that. He hears the crowd and he just takes off.

"I knew Chance Du Roy would take some passing as I won on him last time. It's hard to win big races these days. It's amazing to get a big one on the board."

Bowen added: "This has made our season. Our horses have been coughing and they've not been right for a while. We worked him last week and thought he was in real good form. We took him out of the National because of the ground. It's some achievement to win three Tophams."

Always Waining looked like running in tomorrow's Grand National right up until the last minute, but connections clearly made the right choice by sticking with his favourite race.

............
Get the Timeform Jury's verdict on today's Aintree BBC races with Timeform TV Focus. Click HERE to find out more about this successful tipping service.

Teddy Grimthorpe has described Frankel as a "very unlikely" participant in the JLT Lockinge Stakes at Newbury next month following the injury he sustained when working in Newmarket on Wednesday morning......

Timeform preview a weekend that is most certainly headed by the Grand National, but Aintree's undercard is full of quality and there are classic trials at Leopardstown on Sunday......

There is another busy weekend in the offing Stateside, with several graded races, including a couple with million-dollar price tags. Timeform assess the key contenders......

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Topham Chase Result: Always Waining lands remarkable hat-trick

News / Timeform / 13 April 2012 / Leave a Comment

Peter Bowen's Always Waining

"He's absolutely amazing. He gives everyone who rides him a great spin around here..."

Peter Bowen's Always Waining achieved an amazing feat at Aintree on Friday, winning his third Topham Chase in succession...

The 11-year-old rarely shows much sparkle for the majority of the season but come Aintree in April, the veteran springs to life.

Once again jumping the with aplomb, the 11-1 chance was one of a small group vying for the lead rounding the turn for home and Fistral Beach looked to be travelling strongest, but it was Always Waining who got away from the final fence quickest and he ran on strongly to score by four and a half lengths.

Chance Du Roy, who touched an in-running low of [1.9] grabbed the runner-up spot from Fistral Beach (went as low as [1.66]), with Aimigayle taking fourth.

Winning jockey Tom O'Brien said: "He's absolutely amazing. He gives everyone who rides him a great spin around here and I'm delighted with that. He hears the crowd and he just takes off.

"I knew Chance Du Roy would take some passing as I won on him last time. It's hard to win big races these days. It's amazing to get a big one on the board."

Bowen added: "This has made our season. Our horses have been coughing and they've not been right for a while. We worked him last week and thought he was in real good form. We took him out of the National because of the ground. It's some achievement to win three Tophams."

Always Waining looked like running in tomorrow's Grand National right up until the last minute, but connections clearly made the right choice by sticking with his favourite race.

............
Get the Timeform Jury's verdict on today's Aintree BBC races with Timeform TV Focus. Click HERE to find out more about this successful tipping service.

Teddy Grimthorpe has described Frankel as a "very unlikely" participant in the JLT Lockinge Stakes at Newbury next month following the injury he sustained when working in Newmarket on Wednesday morning......

Timeform preview a weekend that is most certainly headed by the Grand National, but Aintree's undercard is full of quality and there are classic trials at Leopardstown on Sunday......

There is another busy weekend in the offing Stateside, with several graded races, including a couple with million-dollar price tags. Timeform assess the key contenders......

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Premier League News: Wolves take remarkable risk on Connor

Premier League / Michael Lintorn / 24 February 2012 / Leave a Comment

Wolves have promoted number two Terry Connor until the summer

"Despite being chosen, Connor is just a [1.3] favourite on Betfair. The reason is that interim appointments are only settled after the caretaker has survived ten consecutive league games."

Wolves have met their deadline to hire a new manager before Saturday's trip to Newcastle, but the appointment has done little to calm relegation fears...

First Alan Curbishley turned it down, then Brian McDermott said no and finally Walter Smith decided it wasn't for him, so Wolves have been forced to confirm assistant Terry Connor as their boss until the end of the season.

Having stated 11 days ago upon sacking Mick McCarthy, who paid the price for a 5-1 home derby loss to West Brom which pushed them back into the relegation zone, that "it is not a job for a novice", they have wound up with a coach who has never managed at any level.

Although this writer questioned whether any of the trio initially linked with the Molineux job - Steve Bruce, Curbishley and Neil Warnock - were a significant improvement on McCarthy, you suspect that most Wolves fans would have preferred one of that experienced trio to his former number two.

The most damning verdict on the decision has been made by Betfair punters, with the Black Country strugglers backed in to [1.67] for the drop already on Friday morning. It is a hefty [6.4] that Connor immediately calms the doubters with a victory at Newcastle this weekend.

You may wonder why Betfair's next Wolves manager market remains open, and why despite being chosen, Connor is just a [1.3] favourite. The reason is that interim appointments are only settled after the caretaker has survived ten consecutive league games. Click here for more information.

So the fact that there are still people willing to lay the 49-year-old suggests that they are sceptical as to whether Wolves will stand by him if he encounters a difficult start.

He is incredibly the third contender to be backed at odds-on during the process, while McDermott and Smith traded at [2.0] and [2.12] at various stages, so it has been a great market for bold layers.

A case could be made for all three outcomes in this match so the draw is the call at an attractive price. One thing is for sure: there will be no shortage of goals, says Lee Dixon....

Gareth Purnell is normally against Aston Villa, but on Saturday he is fully behind them and expects them to get at least a point against Wigan. Here, he tells us why......

High-flying Manchester City play hosts to a struggling Blackburn side and it's extremely unlikely that we're going to have an upset on the cards here. Expect a City win and plenty of goals, says Lee Dixon....

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