Double Rush Heads One-two For Charlie Hills At HQ

Double Rush led home one-two for trainer 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 back, Double Rush was a 9-4 favourite to follow up on his handicap debut in the hands of Jason Watson and got the better of stablemate Bob Mali by a length and a quarter.


Hills stated of the winner: "He won his amateur very well in a good time at Wolverhampton and I believe he's going to be a great, 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 deal with 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 could intend him for that, but we'll see how he improves and take it step by step."


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


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


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


"We provided her an experience of the racecourse at the end of last year, however it was heavy ground and she didn't like it, she was a bit weak and the jockey took care of her and she has actually done well today as it wasn't the plan and there was no pace, it was an untidy race - she looked a bit chewy early but settled into it.


"That was over seven and it quite seemed like we ought to remain at 7 and do not return to six and not increase to a mile, so we'll have a great look. I wouldn't wish to hurry her back from that as she's had a difficult enough race, but you have got to enjoy with her.


"She revealed a fantastic mindset because she struck the front, then wasn't sure what she was suggested to be doing, but she didn't quit. Ryan (Moore, on Richard Hannon's runner-up Stellenbosch) had the rail and that's a huge benefit with these unskilled 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 Nifty in the hands of Trevor Whelan.