Double Rush Heads One-two For Charlie Hills At HQ

Double Rush led home one-two for fitness instructor Charlie Hills in the curtain-raising bet365 Handicap on Craven Stakes day at Newmarket.


A winner on the all-weather at Wolverhampton little bit over a fortnight ago, Double Rush was a 9-4 favourite to follow up on his handicap launching in the hands of Jason Watson and got the better of stablemate Bob Mali by a length and a quarter.


Hills said of the winner: "He won his novice extremely well in a great time at Wolverhampton and I believe he's going to be a great, improving three-year-old through the season.


"A few of our horses weren't best last season, so he had a good mark truly. He probably didn't deal with the track that well today and a flatter track will suit him better.


"There's a valuable handicap at York a week or two before Royal Ascot and we might aim him for that, but we'll see how he improves and take it step by step."


John and Thady Gosden quickly followed up their win in the feature Craven Stakes by saddling Swiss Lightning (2-1 preferred) to take the Rossdales Maiden Fillies' Stakes in figured out fashion.


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


Making simply her 2nd start, the Lordship Stud stud-owned child of Night Of Thunder revealed a tremendous attitude to come out on top in an awesome .


"We offered her an experience of the racecourse at the end of last year, but it was heavy ground and she didn't like it, she was a bit weak and the jockey cared for her and she has actually succeeded today as it wasn't the strategy and there was no rate, it was an untidy race - she looked a bit chewy at an early stage however settled into it.


"That was over seven and it quite seemed like we must remain at 7 and do not return to six and not go up to a mile, so we'll have a good look. I wouldn't want to rush her back from that as she's had a tough enough race, but you have got to more than happy with her.


"She showed a fantastic attitude because she hit the front, then wasn't sure what she was indicated to be doing, however she didn't offer up. Ryan (Moore, on Richard Hannon's runner-up Stellenbosch) had the rail and that's a huge advantage 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 favourite Fifty Nifty in the hands of Trevor Whelan.