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Silviniaco Conti bounces back to thump Ascot rivals

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Silviniaco Conti

Silviniaco Conti was an emphatic winner of the Betfair Ascot Chase

  PICTURE: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)  

 By Keith Melrose 3:22PM 20 FEB 2016 

Report: Ascot, Saturday

Betfair Ascot Chase (Grade 1) 2m5f, 5yo+

DUAL King George VI Chase winner Silviniaco Conti recorded his first win of the season and his seventh Grade 1 win overall when taking the Betfair Ascot Chase in great style on Saturday.

Sent off the 2-1 favourite under Noel Fehily, Silviniaco Conti was never far off the lead and stretched away in the straight to win by 20 lengths. His old rival Dynaste stayed on past a tiring Royal Regatta to take second.

The win represented a brilliant revival for Silviniaco Conti, who had been beaten in both the Betfair Chase and King George this season and had not even been entered in next month’s Timico Cheltenham Gold Cup, for which he had been favourite in 2015.

Noel Fehily, his partner for six of his seven top-level successes, said: “I’m delighted to get him back again. Well done to Paul Nicholls and his team. It’s a great training performance.

“I thought we went a right good gallop and I held on to him because I wanted him to gallop right through the line and he did.

“He’s jumped much quicker today. At Haydock and Kempton he wasn’t so good as he can be, so it was great to see that quickness over a fence back again.”

Problems behind him

The warning signs for Silviniaco Conti’s rivals were there from an early stage, as he jumped and travelled with the vigour of old in first-time blinkers. Only Royal Regatta could live with him as they stretched on towards the home turn and that rival would pay for his efforts as the winner moved on approaching the last.

“I was absolutely mortified when he ran like he did at Kempton,” said trainer Paul Nicholls afterwards. “This is probably the first time we’ve had him pain-free this season. The blinkers were the right thing today, the ground was right and I’d say he was back to his best.

“After Irving had run so bad in the race before [at Wincanton] it was a pleasure to see one run as well as he did. A lot of our horses have run really well. We have had loads of winners in the last fortnight but the odd one like Irving have run terrible.

“To win seven Grade 1 races after Kauto and co have finished is great.”

No Cheltenham for Conti

After a troubled season and a similarly checkered history with the Gold Cup, Silviniaco Conti does not even hold an entry for the race this season and thoughts quickly turned to his next target.

Nicholls confirmed that his stable star will not run in the Ryanair World Hurdle, then added: “The Grand National is a definite possibility. It is highly likely he could run. He is going to be arguably well in now and Noel is keen on it.”

Well-in would be an understatement. Silviniaco Conti has been given  11st 8lb for Aintree, the equivalent of a mark of 163. He reached a peak of 177 after winning his first King George in 2013.

 

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