Exeter on Sunday stages the first of the season’s three point-to-point bumpers (5.18).
Open to unlicensed trainers of point-to-pointers and restricted to four-, five- and six-year-olds who have won or been placed this season in the sport’s Flat or maiden races, the £4,000 contest over a trip just in excess of two miles has attracted 11 entries. Licensed trainers who handle eligible horses can also make entries, but on this occasion none have done so.
West Country stables are well represented, but Shropshire’s Phil Rowley has entered five-year-old Ballymena Boy, who was second in a Flat race at Bangor-on-Dee, while Gloucestershire trainers Max Comley and Myles Osborne have also made entries. Comley has booked Toby McCain-Mitchell to ride Venus Queen, while Osborne has entered Get Cracking.
The colours of former Point-to-Point Owners’ & Riders’ Association president Percy Tory could be carried by the Robert Chanin-trained Badbury Rings, who was second in a maiden race at Larkhill last month (pictured above under Ella Herbison), while Chanin has also entered Just A Glance. He was third at Milborne St Andrew to Go Johnny Go, who is one of two Josh Newman entries for Exeter, the other being Mount Mason, who dead-heated in a young-horse maiden held at Charlton Horethorne.
Leslie Jefford has also made two entries – Prophesea was second in a three-mile maiden at Charlton Horethorne, while Klervia was third in a Larkhill Flat race. Completing the possible runners are Dani Kenealy’s Locked Down Lad and Robert Pudd’s Pyleigh Master, who have won Flat races at Milborne and Larkhill respectively.
Prophesea (left, Callum Pritchard) finishing second to Comonilean at Charlton Horethorne (Ce)
Further point-to-point bumpers will take place at Aintree (£8,500 total prize fund) on Friday, May 17 and at Stratford (£6,500) on Friday, May 31.