INOTHEWAYURTHINKIN, MYSTICAL POWER and Jonbon landed a Grade 1 treble at the Aintree Festival on Friday in the green and gold of owner JP McManus.
Inothewayurthinkin produced a Cheltenham Festival repeat to announce himself as a staying chaser of the highest order with victory in the Mildmay Novices’ Chase.
With Broadway Boy and Chianti Classico putting on an exhibition of jumping on the front end, Mark Walsh was able to bide his time on the 6-4 favourite before finishing with a real flourish to lead home a McManus-owned one-two, with Iroko back in second.
There was a sad postscript to the race, with confirmation from trainer Lucinda Russell that Giovinco suffered a fatal injury following his fall at the final fence.
Later on Friday, Mystical Power fended off the renewed challenge of Firefox to win the Top Novices’ Hurdle at Aintree.
Trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by Mark Walsh, Mystical Power has long carried plenty of expectation as a son of Galileo out of Champion Hurdle winner Annie Power.
He came close to emulating his dam as a Festival winner when finishing second in last month’s Supreme and finally graduated to Grade One glory here.
Walsh was happy to settle in the pack through the early stages as Lookaway raced to the fore, but with three to jump, Mystical Power (11-10 favourite) was clearly travelling best of all.
He took it up before jumping the last from Firefox and while that rival battled back gamely on the run to the line, Mystical Power was half a length too good.
And McManus’s treble was complete a short while later as Jonbon took the step up in trip in his stride as he roared back to his best with a brave success in the Melling Chase.
Trying two and a half miles for the first time, Jonbon (11-10 favourite) travelled supremely in the hands of Nico de Boinville, with Jack Kennedy keen to make this a stiff stamina test sending Conflated to the lead where he was closely shadowed by Pic D’Orhy and Minella Drama.
Jonbon and Protektorat were always hot on that trio’s tail and as Kennedy continued to pour on the coal aboard Conflated down towards two out, Jonbon loomed menacingly with Protektorat staying on strongly.
Nico de Boinville edged Jonbon to a narrow advantage jumping the last and the Seven Barrows star pulled out all the stops as he kept on right to the line to hold off the game Conflated, with Protektorat back in third after a thrilling conclusion to the Grade One event.
In the final Grade One of the day, Dancing City strutted his way to a cosy success in the Sefton Novices’ Hurdle.
A surprise Grade One winner at the Dublin Racing Festival in February, Willie Mullins’ seven-year-old was third when upped to three miles for the Albert Bartlett Novices’ Hurdle at the Cheltenham Festival.
Paul Townend’s mount was placed alongside fellow Joe and Marie Donnelly-owned runner Shanagh Bob as the duo tracked the steady pace set by Albert Bartlett runner-up The Jukebox Man and Pertemps second Kyntara.
The tempo was increased turning for home and as Kyntara began to retreat it was Dancing City who appeared in The Jukebox Man’s slipstream travelling menacingly.
Townend stalked his prey down to the final flight, with the rider simply having to keep the 4-1 winner up to his work in the closing stages as the gelding kept on for a five-and-a-half-length triumph, reversing Cheltenham form with The Jukebox Man who bravely held on for second.
Kyntara took a heavy fall at the last, but was thankfully able to walk away.
