Emotional winner for Rebecca Menzies at Sedgefield

There were emotional scenes in the winner’s enclosure on Tuesday, after Imperial Rule carried the colours of the late to victory at his local track.

Wade saddled over 200 winners from his County Durham base before retiring in 2016. He later handed over the reins to Rebecca Menzies, who recently sent out the 400th winner of her burgeoning career.

Wade died aged 80 last month and a minute’s silence was held before racing in both his honour and that of George Reveley, widower of former leading trainer Mary Reveley.

Imperial Rule was a 7-1 shot for the Racing Supports Graham Lee superstar-auctions.com Novices’ Handicap Chase and finished with a flourish under a well-judged ride from Ross Chapman to score by four and a half lengths.

“It’s brilliant to win a race that was named for John and has been switched for Graham. Graham Lee actually said the other night ‘there’s one rule in racing, there are no rules’, and I think that just sums that up. He (Imperial Rule) pulled it out of the bag when it mattered,” Menzies told Sky Sports Racing.

“We need to celebrate what John has done for northern racing and what he’s done for all of us. To keep training winners in his colours is an absolute honour.”

In early October Menzies surprised Wade by sending a small team of runners to Downpatrick and sponsored a race in his honour, and the plan came to fruition, with Wade on hand to see Edgewell carry his silks to victory in the Rebecca Menzies Racing 40 Winners And Counting For John Wade Handicap Chase.

Edgewell’s success was the second leg of a double on that card for the team, with Boomslang earlier making a successful debut over fences for Wade’s close friend Maria D Myco.

Menzies added: “John and Maria have some lovely horses at home, young horses as well that haven’t made the track yet. Hopefully we can keep training those and see those horses through, I’m sure that’s what John would have wanted.

“He wanted winners and always wanted winners at Sedgefield. We had a really fun-filled season planned out, Downpatrick was the start of it and we had all sorts of stuff planned for him.

“I think he was definitely there urging that horse down to the last and hopefully we can continue to do him proud.

“I’m absolutely delighted to win a race named after another complete legend in Graham Lee. They are two such massively influential people in my career, so to train the winner of that race means even more.”