Ayr review, results and free video replays on Scottish Grand National day

Hero's Scottish Champion Hurdle

Dedicated Hero (12/1) took full advantage of late drama in the Coral Scottish Champion Hurdle although jockey Danny McMenamin was confident his mount would have won regardless.

It was too far out to be certain but the race changed complexion completely at the second last.

The 13/8 favourite Tutti Quanti, who had made the running, was beginning to come under pressure when meeting that flight wrong and taking a crashing fall, hampering and ending any chance held by All In You who had made his ground stylishly in the straight having played no part in the early pace.

On the outside of the pack, Captain Hugo still appeared to be going well enough despite some novicey hurdling and his jumping came under pressure when McMenamin saw his opportunity after the second last and asked Dedicated Hero to go about his work.

The pair quickly opened up a clear lead and another mistake by Captain Hugo at the last meant they weren't for catching.

The pair were separated by five lengths with Ooh Betty, a length behind, reprising last year's third with a tenacious display to narrowly edge out All In You who deserves credit for his rally.

Dedicated Hero had been pulled up behind Captain Hugo in the Morebattle Hurdle at Kelso in February, prompting trainer Sandy Thomson to send his charge for a wind operation and that procedure has clearly worked the oracle with the seven-year-old now two from two since, taking his career record to six wins from 15 starts.

"He's always been a star," Thomson told Racing TV, "and probably needed his wind done at the beginning of the season but we've got it done now and what a difference it has made to him.

"He obviously won two miles five around Kelso on very different ground but he handled this ground when he was second to Meetmebythesea over fences here so I was very confident of all my horses coming here this weekend that he would handle the ground.

"Weight in this ground is a great leveller and a stone and a half was always going to be a big ask I felt. I know we're 6 lb wrong [out of the handicap] but he [Tutti Quanti] was still going to have to give us a lot of weight and we knew we were probably going to handle the ground and we would stay.

"He'll go chasing in the autumn. We were distraught when he got brought down at Musselburgh that first fence and now it's the best thing that's ever happened; if he'd gone and won that day, he probably wouldn't be here today.

"I'm just delighted for the whole team and the owners; we have a great team of staff and a great team of owners."

Pounding home the advantage

Pounding Poet (18/1) played his hand late in the CPMS Novices' Champion Handicap Chase and ran out a cosy winner from 10/3 favourite Big John Wayne.

Big John Wayne had been in the firing line throughout the three mile contest and fared better than the other front runner, Kdeux Saint Fray, who dropped away quickly from three out. I Wish You, a stablemate of the runner-up, came through to challenge but Stan Sheppard and Pounding Poet were in their slipstream and the jockey had yet to ask for maximum effort.

The three jumped the last in a line with Pounding Poet far from fluent but he quickened nicely when asked by Sheppard and put three lengths and half-a-length between himself and his rivals.

Pounding Poet, a non-runner at Doncaster in January due to the unsuitably soft ground, made light of the testing conditions to record a sixth career success and a first over fences on just his fourth start.

When asked if he'd considered withdrawing Pounding Poet due to the ground, trainer Tom Lacey replied: "He was always going to run.

"I went through all of his form and Montregard's, I went back to the beginning. Montregard has been a non-runner on heavy ground previously and I was absolutely loathe to go and run him on heavy ground today but I was always going to run Pounding Poet. He has got bits and pieces of form on heavy, he ran very well round Chepstow one day and didn't run badly round Doncaster on heavy ground so we were always going to roll the dice with him.

"Montregard has a nice option at Sandown next weekend and he'll have a better chance there on nicer ground than he will here today so that was a relatively easy decision. Gibbs Island, that would be the worst ground that he's ever been asked to run on and he hasn't performed on it in the past; that was a huge disappointment for me. Sea Tempest is a horse we really, really think a lot of and win, lose or draw he was going to have a very hard race for a four-year-old on heavy ground and I just didn't want to expose him to that at this stage of his life.

"We'll know head for the veterans' chasers in the winter [with Pounding Poet]. The plan was to give him a break and campaign him through the summer months on nicer ground because that's where his best form has been so we'll now probably summer him and head for the veteran chases next year."

Moudan right on Brand

Moudan (4/1) ran out a stylish winner of the Scotty Brand Handicap Chase for Sean Bowen and Ciaran Murphy.

There was no shortage of pace on paper in the two mile contest and they appeared to go hard early as Palacio and Matata contested the early lead with San Bruit and Traprain Law content to sit off the gallop.

Palacio won the early skirmish and the pace settled but a series of blunders put paid to his chances and Sans Bruit took over the running after the halfway point. Moudan was never too far behind his rival but was patiently ridden by Bowen who bided his time before playing his hand.

Once he did, the race was over in a matter of strides as Moudan quickly opened up a commanding advantage and the remainder flattered to deceive. French import Le Nez Creux, on debut for Gavin Cromwell, finished off his race well but the bird had long since flown with the official winning distance confirmed as 11 lengths.

Moudan was racing from 2 lb out of the weights but had been progressing nicely in Ireland, winning on his penultimate start before finishing a good second in a listed handicap at the Fairyhouse Festival over Easter.

Murphy, for whom it was a first winner in Britain, said: "It's lovely, it's lovely for us and the yard and for all the staff at home and we're really pleased with that result.

"It [the ground] was probably a little bit tight for him at Fairyhouse the last day but he ran a cracker, really pleased with that. We've had this race on our radar for a little while but we didn't think we'd get our ground over here but for the last week we've been keeping an eye and when we got here this morning it was proper heavy.

"He's some horse, he's improving away all the time; we felt at home he was as good as ever even after Fairyhouse, that he'd come again. We said he needed to improve but he's improved plenty and he improves for that ground."

She's electric!

Game Colours (10/1) was a hit in the Jordan Electrics Ltd Seafield Trophy Mares' Handicap Hurdle for Sam Twiston-Davies and Ben Clarke.

There were four still in with a chance approaching the final flight in the three mile contest but Game Colours showed her rivals a clean pair of heels to open up a lead of three or four lengths.

World Of Fortunes, under top-weight, made late inroads but although Game Colours was all out, the line was always going to come too soon for the second who still had a length and a quarter to find when they passed the line.

Love Of Neymore was over four lengths away in third with Pinot Rouge fourth.

Twiston-Davies is now two from two aboard Game Colours who was last seen finishing down the field in the Imperial Cup over two miles.

"One over the minimum distance and one over three!" he said.

"So, a good bit of training and she's a game filly herself. She's obviously got three miles well today; good, even pace throughout, got me that quite easy and then a long way from the back of the last.

"She jumped well, went to sleep throughout the race, so all in all, very happy."

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