Horse racing betting

After a steady diet of all-weather handicaps, jump racing emerged from winter hibernation at Kempton Park yesterday, though persistent rain made it a test of stamina for horse and punter. The select few who made the effort saw an eye-catching chase debut by Mad Max, another talented inmate of Nicky Hendersons stable, and the end of a long winnerless spell for Andy Turnell, who trained Micheal Flips to win the Lanzarote Hurdle Handicap, the feature race of the afternoon.

Heroic work on the Lambourn gallops has allowed Henderson and his fellow Berkshire trainers to keep their horses ticking over during the big freeze. But it was still a cause of concern for the trainer to be pitching a horse of Mad Maxs huge, but delicate, constitution into a novice chase on testing ground on a fast track. The trainer, though, could barely have flinched as the eight-year- old comfortably justified odds-on favouritism with a fine display of jumping, defying four operations that have restricted his progress and compromised his talent in recent seasons.

Henderson can get quite excited after victory, but his eulogy of Mad Maxs ability made the 20-1 widely offered for him at the Arkle Chase at the Cheltenham Festival seem worthy of a second look. He is a very, very classy horse with a lot of speed, said Henderson. Hes had four operations on his breathing so theres nothing more we can do. The good thing was that he didnt make a noise until he was coming in and yet the conditions were horrible.

With Riverside Theatre, a recent Kempton winner, and Long Run, winner of his past three races on both sides of the Channel, Henderson holds a strong hand for the Arkle, the two-mile novice championship in March, which is already shaping up to be one of the races of the Festival.

Once he had pulled his way to the front down the back straight, Barry Geraghty always seemed to have the race under control, though Ruby Walsh and Mahonia made a good race of it until Mad Maxs handsome leap at the last fence.

Rather further back down the road from Henderson in his racing career, Alex Hales is just beginning to emerge as a trainer to follow. Hales served his apprenticeship as assistant to Kim Bailey and Charlie Mann before setting up on his own. It will do no harm to his future progress if Iconoclast turns out to be as good on the track as he is easy on the eye.

Ive always thought the world of this horse, said Hales after the nine-year- old had taken the Novices Handicap Chase, sponsored by William Hill, under Paddy Brennan. But hes been frustrating to train. This is the first year Ive had a clear run with him. Hes a lot better than this.

Turnell was thankful for any winner after 78 days without one. On recent form, Micheal Flips did not seem to have the heart to end the barren spell in a competitive handicap on heavy ground. But, sent to the front by Nick Scholfield, the 9-1 shot came home to bring Turnell a change of fortune for the new year.

In contrast, no Saturday would be complete without a winner or two for Paul Nicholls and his jockey, Ruby Walsh. The champion trainer had to be satisfied with a mere double, through The Minack and Fistral Beach, both of whom are in the formative stages of their careers. The Minack, though, profited from a lapse of concentration or sheer bloody-mindedness by the favourite, Kennel Hill, who seemed to have the race under control before almost slowing to a standstill before the last, while Fistral Beach was produced to perfection by Walsh inside the last 100 yards to end a run of five consecutive seconds.