By dai-sport racing writer Brian Lee at Chepstow Racecourse The Coral Welsh Grand National at Chepstow was won by the 3-1 favourite Elegant Escape, but the loudest cheers of the day came in the previous race. Llancarfan’s Isabel Williams, aged 21 and riding her mother Catherine’s six-year-old French-bred Virginia Chick, won the ‘Smart Money’s On Coral’ Handicap Hurdle. Chick […]

Coral Welsh Grand National winner Elegant Escape could now be pointed towards Gold Cup glory after leading them all home with his triumph at Chepstow. The biggest race in the Welsh calendar was won by the 3-1 favourite on Thursday, giving trainer Colin Tizzard his second success in three years. Now, Tizzard – who won with Native River in 2016 – says the second season chaser is heading towards other major races such as the Gold Cup.

Raz De Maree can achieve a rare feat at Chepstow on Thursday by winning the Coral Welsh Grand National for the second time in the same calendar year. The biggest race in the Welsh diary takes place on December 27, less than 12 months since the veteran horse triumphed in the postponed race back in January. Raz De Maree made headlines when winning last year given the horse was only three years younger than his 16-year-old jockey, rising Welsh star James Bowen.

Ynysbwl’s Bradley Gibbs was in cracking form at the Carmarthenshire Hunt Point-To-Point Steeplechases held at Ffos Las Racecourse (writes Brian Lee). He won the Mares Maiden race on Highway Jewell, the Restricted Open on Captain McGinley and the Conditions race on TheGirlFromMilan. Highway Jewell, a four-year-old chestnut filly and the youngest of the seven starters, finished […]

Brian Lee wrote ‘The Welsh Grand National from Deerstalker to Emperor’s Choice (History Press) and in his foreword National Hunt racing legend Peter Scudamore wrote, “it is an engrossing study that documents the history of the great race and charts the development of National Hunt racing.” The big event in the Welsh sporting calendar arrives […]

Still Believing, a 10-year-old chestnut mare, has been a good servant to Vale of Glamorgan trainer Evan Williams.  Burdened with top weight of 11st 12lbs and ridden by Mitchell Bastyn she came home a nine lengths winner of the £21,665 George Smith Horseboxes Mares’ Handicap Chase at Hereford. A  9-1 chance, Still Believing who is […]

The rearranged Carmarthenshire Hunt Point-To-Point Steeplechases takes place at Ffos Las Racecourse on Saturday, December 22 (writes Steph Rogers). Entries for the first of the West Wales meetings are high in both quantity and quality in what promises to be a fantastic days racing. There are plenty of English raiders among those entered with Sego […]

The Coral Welsh Grand National takes place at Chepstow on December 27 – a race won in memorable style last year by then 16-year-old jockey James Bowen. Since then, the young Welsh rider has continued to give further glimpses of his rare talent, as champion jockey Richard Johnson told Rob Cole. Richard Johnson may have been the champion jump jockey for the last three years, but he knows he has to keep looking over his shoulder at the youngsters lining up to knock him off his perch. Firstly, there was Sean Bowen and now there is James Bowen – a double assault from a Pembrokeshire farm that is threatening to destabilise the old order.

Vale of Glamorgan trainers Evan Williams  and Tim Vaughan both saddled winners at Chepstow (writes Brian Lee). Williams’s four-year-old Secret Reprieve was a 50-1 winner of the Native River Supports The IJF Novices’ Hurdle and Vaughan’s  five-year-old Trixter won the Smart Money’s On Coral Conditional Jockeys Novices Hurdle. The former, ridden by stable jockey Adam […]

Jake Exelby met Welsh racehorse trainer David Brace at his Dunraven Stud, Llanmihangel Farm, Pyle. Former coal miner Brace chatted to Jake, who describes his host as an ‘exceptional character’. Welshman David Brace is a man who moved from coal face to horse race.  The former miner turned businessman, philanthropist, stud owner, racehorse trainer seems to […]

Byron Moorcroft, of Cowbridge, rode his first ever four-timer at the Curre & Llangibby Hunt Point-To-Point Steeplchases at Howick, Chepstow (writes Brian Lee). Byron, 31, took the  Confined Race on Tommy Faulkner’s Black Jack Rover then on the same owner’s Mister Robbo he landed the Restricted.  Then after a walk-over on Jason Warner’s Beneficial Joe […]

The Welsh point-to-point season starts with the Curre & Llangibby fixture at Howick near Chepstow on Sunday (November 25). Brian Lee, who has been reporting on the Welsh hunt racing scene for more than half-a-century, takes a look at one of his many press cuttings books. This time for 1989. My press cuttings scrapbook for […]

Welsh Champion Hurdle winner Silver Streak failed by a neck to catch the bottom weighted Nietzsche in the Unibet Greatwood Handicap Hurdle at Cheltenham (writes Brian Lee). The race was worth more than £56,000 to the winner. Ridden by stable jockey Adam Wedge, five-year-old Silver Streak, a 12-1 chance in a field of 20 runners, seemed […]

Ffos Las racecourse in West Wales have their annual Countryside jump racing day this Sunday (November 11). The going for Sunday is soft (heavy in places) following 30mm rain on Wednesday, 6mm Thursday.  Friday is cloudy with 10-15mm rain forecast. Heavy showers on Saturday, while Sunday is brighter. There are seven races, the first at […]

Bridgend’s Connor Brace, aged 17, chalked up his first ever double under rules when winning the opening and closing races at Wetherby (writes Brian Lee). Rugby-mad Connor, who used to play mini and junior rugby at Kenfig Hill RFC, won the Conditional Jockeys Novices’ Handicap Hurdle on the Fergal O’Brien trained Ballyhome and then won […]

By Brian Lee Silver Streak won on the richest race day of the year at Ffos Las. A bumper crowd attended, there were 80 runners in total and more than £100,000 of prize money on offer across the eight races. That included £45,000 for the Dunraven Group Welsh Champion Hurdle feature race.  The Champion Hurdle […]

TUFTS OF THE  WELSH TURF By Brian Lee Bookmakers at the Gelligaer Farmers Hunt Steeplechases in 2004 were hit for six when reigning Welsh champion point-to-point rider Tim Vaughan, now a leading Welsh trainer, landed a massive gamble in winning a confined maiden race on seven-year-old Clear Away. The horse’s owner, Andrew Lowrie from Barry, had […]

dai-sport’s horse racing column – by Brian Lee Garo De Juilley won the Silver Trophy Handicap Hurdle at Chepstow for jockey Paddy Brennan and trainer Sophie Leech, who is based only 20 miles away in Gloucestershire. The winner had been bought out of Paul Nicholls’s stable for just £8,000 in May. Ireland’s Point of Principle, ridden […]

dai-sport’s horse racing column – by Brian Lee Welshman Simon Rowlands has been appointed general manager at the Ffos Las racecourse near Llanelli. Rowlands, from Bargoed, moves from the Chepstow course to Ffos Las and will take up the reins for his new role in November. Both Welsh courses are owned by the Arena Racing […]

Brian Lee’s Welsh racing column Vale of Glamorgan trainer Tim Vaughan was in good form at Warwick The two horses he saddled there both won their races.  Five-year-old Trixster, a 5-2 chance, took the Penguin Pay Maiden Hurdle by three lengths from the favourite Pontresina. Seven-year-old Canton Prince, who was burdened with top weight of […]