Cracking Rhapsody repeats Morebattle success for Whillans

Cracking Rhapsody repeated his success of last year in the bet365 Morebattle Hurdle at Kelso.

Trained by Ewan Whillans, Cracking Rhapsody was racing off a 13lb higher mark than 12 months ago, but the extra weight proved no barrier to success as he dug deep for Craig Nichol.

Wilful was sent off the 18-5 favourite for the £120,000 race and Jonjo O’Neill jnr was keen to kick on from off, setting a stiff early pace with N’golo which soon began to tell as the race began in earnest.

It looked as though Sean Quinlan had made a winning move when seizing the initiative at the second-last flight on Alnilam, but Cracking Rhapsody was really just getting into gear.

The 12-1 shot kept finding for pressure after jumping the last, eventually coming home a length and a quarter ahead of Alnilam, with Old Gregorian the same distance further back in third.

Whillans said: “I thought it was a deeper race this year and obviously he was 13lb higher. He was up against it and I said this morning I would have been delighted if he was third or fourth, so for him to go and win it again, I’m speechless.

“He’d never be that flashy at home – he just does what he has to do. He worked with a selling plater the other and he got by him in his gallop, but he wasn’t impressive. You kind of have to just put that to the side and hope he turns up on the day.

“He loves it here obviously and he was probably as well as we’ve ever had him. He didn’t actually run badly at Windsor last time, he made a mistake at the last and but for that he might have finished a bit closer, but maybe it was a good thing that he didn’t coming here today.

“He came home from his Windsor run really well and Kelso let us on here a couple of weeks ago for a gallop and that has probably put him right.

“For a yard like ours, he’s an absolute superstar.”

Coral make the winner a 33-1 shot from 50s for the County Hurdle and with a £100,000 bonus on offer if he can follow up at the Cheltenham Festival, and Whillans will give a quick return some consideration.

“We put him in (the County Hurdle) and we said if he wins or he’s just beaten we might go. It’s not far home from Kelso, so he’ll be back in his box by 5pm,” the trainer added.

“We’ll definitely look at it. The Scottish Champion Hurdle would be a nice race, but we’re mindful the ground might dry up at Ayr at the time of year.”