Glamour returns to Pontefract Racecourse for latest meeting

Stilettoes, hats and fascinators were the order of the day as the ladies of Yorkshire dressed to impress to be in with a chance of winning the coveted Best Dressed Lady competition for a top prize of an all-inclusive holiday to the fantastic RIU Cancun resort in Mexico.

The first 500 racegoers through the Premier Enclosure entrance were greeted with a glass of bubbly to kick start their day although the weather failed to play its part with torrential thunderstorms throughout the afternoon.

The coveted Best Dressed competitions took place before racing and the Heart Angels were on hand to pick 100 ladies and 20 gents for their finals. It was the sixth year RIU Hotels & Resorts have sponsored the Best Dressed competitions and they provided yet another spectacular prize for the winning lady and runner-up with Leesa Smickersgill taking the crown.

As for the racing on the day, as the rain came down the ground became progressively softer but there were some sparkling performances, most notably a double for the trainer/jockey combination of Tim Easterby and Duran Fentiman.

Eight-year-old Mikmak rolled back the years in the Veterans 1m Handicap when seeing off some in form rivals. He’s formerly been rated much higher and is undoubtedly well handicapped now he is back in rude health.

The double came about when East Street Revue took the Chaplins Club Handicap over 5f from course specialist Van Gerwen who had won at the track in July.

Feature race was the tiesplanet.com handicap over 2m and Brian Ellison’s Tashkhan was a warm order to take the step up in trip in his stride following his impressive success in the valuable Bet365 Handicap at Haydock last month.

But he had no answer to the Highclere Thoroughbred owned Prince Imperial who made every yard of the running under a great ride by 5lb claimer Tyler Heard for jockey-turned-trainer Richard Hughes.

The rain made it hard work for the two-year-olds in the EBF Maiden over 6f but 14 went to post and it was Hamaki who just prevailed in an exciting finish for the William Haggas team.

Unplaced in a hot race at Newbury, the son of Churchill appreciated the drop in trip and grade and was a brave winner under Dougie Costello for owners Simon Munir and Isaac Suede, whose familiar silks of double green are associated more with National Hunt horses than their flat counterparts.

The opening race was a handicap for amateur gentlemen riders and Richard Fahey deployed the services of Eireann Cagney for his Johnny Boom, who stayed on strongly up the hill despite reservations about his ability to act in the ground.

The Fahey team rarely leave a trip to Pontefract empty handed.

As the rain made a deeper impact, some trainers decided that their horses would not be suited by the monsoon-like conditions and the Bet with Jayne Bookmaker Handicap was reduced to just five runners with Chris Fairhurst’s Lasting Legacy coming out on top for jockey PJ McDonald.

The four-year-old had only won once on turf but had some decent form on softer ground and showed a bucket load of tenacity to get up in the closing stages under the welter burden of 10 stone.

The final race saw a battle of some familiar Ponte names as Round The Island and Mr Orange lined up once again. However, there was a poignant win for the Harvey Bastiman team following the death of his sister Rebecca earlier in the year when their Dark Defender gamely repelled all challengers to win by ¾ length.

There was a lengthy Stewards’ Enquiry after the race as the winner had caused interference to the runner-up, Zumurud, but the Stewards deemed that the result had not been affected and allowed the placings to stand.

Pontefract’s next race meeting is the final Family Day of the year on Sunday. Tickets are selling fast and, with some limits on capacities in place, racegoers are encouraged to book online in advance to avoid disappointment. Limited tickets will be available on the day but, once capacities have been reached, the gates will be closed.

Further information can be found on their website at www.pontefract-races.co.uk