Protektorat makes light of scare to land the odds at Kelso

Protektorat survived an almighty scare at the second-last to land prohibitive odds in the bet365 Premier Chase at Kelso.

Everything looked to be going swimmingly for Dan Skelton’s 1-12 favourite, who had made all the running in the four-horse race.

However, he took off a stride too soon at the penultimate obstacle and landed on the top, firing Harry Skelton up his neck and allowing Minella Drama to take up the running.

Protektorat was given a few strides to get his breath back before he breezed back to the front and won by eight and a half lengths.

“He gave me a fright! I was on a mixed stride and came up long but we got away with it,” said Harry Skelton.

“I had to give him a bit of a chance then, let him get his breath back a bit and then he took off again.

“Obviously it looked like he would take all the beating beforehand and everything was great apart from one jump. You can’t get it right all the time.

“He’s been very hard from day one, he’s headstrong and likes to get on with it but he’s a superstar and has won over £1million in prize-money. It’s fantastic prize-money here today and every little helps (in trainers’ title race).”

Dan Skelton told ITV Racing: “He’s a brilliant horse, but I kind of half-thought he was going to make a mistake as he was so enthusiastic all the way round and he had everything his own way.

“It’s a hard thing to do to ride at that pace when you should be sending them on.

“I genuinely thought he was better coming into today’s race than at Windsor. He made the mistake but got back on top, he’s the best we’ve had him this season.

“He’ll go on to Aintree now for the Grade One.”

Skelton is already on a par prize-money wise with where he was for the whole of last season and added: “That (championship) should take care of itself now. I’m not going to publicly declare that we’ve won it because we haven’t given how it bore out last year, but we’ve never been in a better position.”

Captain Hugo (14-1) made the eight-hour journey from Philip Hobbs and Johnson White’s Minehead base worthwhile when winning the £120,000 bet365 Morebattle Hurdle.

A novice, he had fallen on his last start at Musselburgh but travelled well in the hands of Sean Houlihan, who was riding his biggest winner for eight years.

Cracking Rhapsody, bidding for a hat-trick in the race for local trainer Ewan Whillans, could only finish sixth.

“He was a bit slow early on as a novice taking on handicappers for the first time, but he’s tough,” said Houlihan.

“I wanted to make my challenge after the last and he kept going all the way to the line.

“It was a brave call to run in a handicap after a fall, but it paid off. He’ll be a lovely horse over a fence and I imagine it will be Aintree next for him.”

White said: “It won’t feel like eight hours on the way home!

“He was entered in the novice on this card and after watching it I wished we’d run in that, but I don’t now.

“He’s not in at Cheltenham so we’ll look at something at Aintree for him.”

Montemares took his record to three from four and paid a handsome compliment to No Drama This End with a stylish victory in the bet365 Premier Novices’ Hurdle.

Backed from 12-1 into 6-1 near the off, Tom Lacey’s youngster cruised into contention in the straight under a confident Stan Sheppard before breezing past Kosac d’Oudairies.

His only previous defeat had come in the Grade One Challow Hurdle, won by Paul Nicholls’ Cheltenham favourite.

“I couldn’t go the early gallop so I just sat on him as long as I could and then the race fell apart around him,” said Sheppard.

“He’s only five, he got outstayed at Newbury by older horses but if I could design a race it would be this trip, two-mile-two.”