In-form trainer Grant Tuer was delighted after landing the £10,000 Stable Staff Bonus prize following the Sky Bet Sunday Series meeting at Haydock.
Tuer has enjoyed a really productive 2021, recording impressive win strike-rates throughout April (26%), May (23%), June (33%), July (23%) and August (32%), before picking up his second winner of September courtesy of Lezardrieux (17/2) in Sunday's Sky Bet Sunday Series Sprint Handicap.
The four-year-old has done nothing but improve in the last 12 months and shrugged off another 2lb rise for his recent Catterick success with a game victory, sticking on well to win by a neck having hit the front inside the final 100 yards.
The win sealed the Stable Staff Bonus for his team after ending the inaugural Sky Bet-backed Sunday Series with two winners and four places, just edging out fellow trainer Jim Goldie who had two winners but only three places.
Tuer said on ITV Racing: "You can't do it without the staff, you can't ride them all out yourself, or feed them all yourself.
"It's great from Sky Bet putting the money up for the stable staff, it's superb.
"It's not easy getting staff and it's long hours and hard work. There are seven or eight of them in the yard but I give them this cheque (£10,000) tomorrow they'll all be in Tenerife for the week and I'll be on my own!
"The year couldn't have gone better really, we've got 42 winners on the board and we're thrilled."
Also on Sunday, the progressive Turandot (5/1) produced a telling change of gear to land the Sky Bet Sunday Series Fillies' Handicap.
David O'Meara's daughter of Frankel is bred to be useful and she was registering her third win of the season here – and second in her last three starts – with a convincing success under jockey Danny Tudhope.
Waited with in the early exchanges, Turandot moved smoothly into contention with a couple of furlongs to run before picking up the lead inside the final furlong.
Despite a strong finish from the Tuer-trained Libby Ami, Turandot was always in control and won by three quarters of a length, with Astrogem the same distance back in third.
The day began with a huge shock as Street Life (80/1) landed the opening Sky Bet Sunday Apprentice Training Series Handicap, before normal service was resumed when in-form trainer Clive Cox won the Sky Bet Sunday Series Newcomers' EBF Maiden Stakes with Whoputfiftyinyou (10/3).
Smart hurdler Goobinator (15/2) closed the card in style by comfortably outpointing hot-favourite Emaraty Hero in the Sky Bet Sunday Series Handicap.
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