Double Rush Heads One-two For Charlie Hills At HQ

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


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


Hills stated of the winner: "He won his novice effectively in a great time at Wolverhampton and I think he's going to be a good, enhancing three-year-old through the season.


"Some of our horses weren't best last season, so he had a nice mark actually. He most likely didn't manage the track that well today and a flatter track will suit him better.


"There's a valuable handicap at York a week or so before Royal Ascot and we might intend him for that, however we'll see how he enhances and take it step by action."


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


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


Making just her 2nd start, the Lordship Stud stud-owned child of Night Of Thunder revealed a tremendous mindset to come out on top in a thrilling three-way finish.


"We gave 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 pace, it was a messy race - she looked a bit chewy early on however settled into it.


"That was over 7 and it very much felt like we need to remain at 7 and don't go back to 6 and not increase to a mile, so we'll have a good look. I wouldn't desire to hurry her back from that as she's had a tough sufficient race, however you have actually got to be happy with her.


"She showed an excellent attitude due to the fact that she struck the front, then wasn't sure what she was meant to be doing, but she didn't quit. Ryan (Moore, on Richard Hannon's runner-up Stellenbosch) had the rail which's a huge advantage with these inexperienced 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.