A match race between fabulous pups Maree Champion and New Destiny, with each side putting up £5,000, winner-take-all, has brought an extra spice to Saturday’s Derby Final card at Towcester.
Racing Manager Andy Lisemore said: “We were due to stage a puppy open and we had enough entries, but they were all railers. On that basis, I wasn’t prepared to stage it on welfare grounds; I wouldn’t have slept.
“Although it is not ideal, I do sometimes have six railers in a graded race, but that would included more experienced dogs. More importantly, there are ‘railers and railer’. There are some who will go in a straight line and others who are ‘bang’ railers. I can allocate the traps accordingly.
“Even if I had more knowledge of how these pups would run, the rules wouldn’t allow me to place them in the best traps possible. Maybe that is something that has to be looked at.
“The match itself is nothing really to do with us. It basically seemed to involve Mark Wallis and Sean Gresham with Billy Brennan pulling it all together.”
Is there a chance that it could be extended to a third runner?
Andy said: “You would have to speak to them. As far as the rules are concerned, everything is still open, until Friday. Whether either party would want a third runner, I have no idea. We are simply hosting this one.”
