BRITISH PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK

Southfield Code returned from lock down with an A1 win at Monmore. Another four wins later and he is becoming a regular on the chart. The Regency form is certainly holding up with another exceptional run by veteran Affleck Lady on Sunday night at Central Park.

On the subject of open racing Nottingham are back on the scene on Monday. In the last week only two winners have cracked the 30.00 barrier for the Derby trip, the quickest of which was Boherna Act.

Mark Wallis has been preserving at Romford with no success to date for Jesses Sister, but consecutive wins at Henlow including an impressive A1 win suggest that she is finally showing the form that Mark always foresaw. Worth a note for her Romford return. The youngest runner on the chart is 20 month old Towcester puppy Your Round Benny with a smart 16.08 for the 270 meres.

How do you compare runs over different distances? Sheffield’s fastest 500 winner of the week, Bills Direction – who boasts a 1:2 strike rate at Owlerton and Belle Vue – went quickest with a 28.95 run. Probably not quick enough to win too many standard opens. But Newinn Buzz’s 16.05 clocking – his first win since February ­– would probably be good enough for plenty of sprints.

At Yarmouth, a 27.95 was good enough to get Wardys Legend the nod last week. This week, a 27.96 was good enough for Swift Onyx. Pelaw Grange is even tighter, a 25.94 run does the job for a second consecutive week. This time it’s Glengiblin Sweep.

Approaching his fourth birthday Final Mad looked highly tried when beaten second seven times in his last dozen races at Newcastle. Then as a 7-1 shot in A1 he wins in the fastest time of his career, 28.54. At neighbouring Sunderland, Touch The Clouds’ last four winning times have been timed between 27.28 and 27.36. The most recent was a 27.30.

Sticking with the consistency theme, Westwell Julie clocked the fastest time of the week on Sunday 28.25 (+20), exactly the same winning time and going allowance as her previous win.

Returning to the ‘Golden Oldie’ them, Tullymurry Blake, rapidly approaching veteran status, has won 22 sprints at Kinsley, but not quicker than the most recent, 16.09, only nine spots off the FOY.

Perry Barr’s Bagios Magic had one race prior to lockdown, in A5. The lay-off seems to have done him the world of good. He has put on a kilo and clocked the second fastest 480 of the year on Thursday, 28.45. Crayford’s Wishful Poppy has a similar story. A7 before lock down, four wins from six races since including a career best 23.24.

Even if he hadn’t clocked the fastest 500 of the week at Hove, Brutus Bullet would have deserved a nomination for perseverance. The dog who was running A6 at Henlow this time last year, has had a spell back in Ireland and a mini career over hurdles. In fact his last win was a 380mH open at Crayford in December!

With open races cancelled there is a great opportunity to flag up Romford’s Fortunate Ocean. Maggie Lucas’ blue is the most prolific graded winner at the track this year with eight wins. Since lock down, he has eight races for five wins, two seconds and a third spread between A1 and S1. Harlow’s Monfin Rose has won her last four in a row.

The star of the week though has to be Sean Parker’s Glaise Tracy who has won her last seven in a row and nine of her last ten (4-1, 7-2, 5-1, 2-1, 3-1, 2-1, 11-4, 6-5 & 15-8) at Doncaster.