Hegnus and Tzigane du Berlais impress in VP qualification race

Submitted by Robin on 27. May 2019 - 9:42


Velká cena města Pardubic – XXVIIth renewal– First qualification race for the 129th running of the Velka Pardubicka Steeplechase
Steeplechase crosscountry, Category: National Listed, 5800 metres, CZK 400 000
going: 3.3 (good)

1.

9

HEGNUS, 11

70,0

ž. Marek Stromský

JISTĚ

 

2.

4

TZIGANE DU BERLAIS(FR), 8

70,0

ž. Jan Faltejsek

1 1/4

 

3.

3

PLAYER, 7

70,0

ž. Marcel Novák

9

 

4.

6

STRETTON, 9

70,0

ž. Niklas Lovén

6

 

5.

8

CHICNAME DE COTTE(FR), 7

70,0

ž. Jiří Kousek

3

 

6.

7

TER MILL, 13

70,0

Jan Odložil

2 1/4

 

7.

2

RIBELINO(FR), 11

70,0

ž. Andrew Glassonbury

9

 

8.

5

ELDORADO(GER), 12

70,0

ž. Lukáš Matuský

distance

 

PU

1

THEOPHILOS(FR), 9

70,0

ž. Josef Bartoš

 

 

 

The May qualification race for the 2019 Velka Pardubicka was run at 6.40 p.m. on Saturday, May 25th. Plenty of rain had fallen in the week before the race. The going was good, but quite heavy in places on the ploughed fields. The late starting time was due to the CT Sport television timetable, with the Czech ice-hockey team playing in the semi-finals of the world hockey championship at 7 p.m.

The field of nine for the qualification race was small, but the quality was good. The runners included the first three in VP 2018 (Tzigane du Berlais, Hegnus and Stretton) and also the winner of VP 2015 (Ribelino).

Early in the race, Ter Mill, Ribelino and Hegnus were prominent. On the ploughed field behind the copse, Ribelino and Eldorado went to the front of a compact field, and from the Drop until the second from home, Ribelino seemed to enjoy leading the field round. However, the real race began when they came on to the grass track with 600 metres to run. Hegnus overtook Ribelino. Tzigane du Berlais had been tucked in at the back of the field. He overtook all except Hegnus easily enough, but never quite got on terms with Hegnus, which reached the winning post with just over a length to spare.

Player, not yet entered for the VP, ran a solid race, as did Stretton and also newcomer Chicname de Cotte, though none of them at any point seemed likely to finish better than in third, fourth or fifth place, which is where they did finish. Ter Mill, Ribelino and Eldorado ran out of steam well before the end of the race. Ter Mill and Eldorado are both veterans that never have been VP contenders. Ribelino, still only 11-y-o, suggested there might be some more races in him.

Theophilos had a problem at the fourth from home, and was pulled up.   

Hegnus, trained by Radek Holčák and ridden by Marek Stromský, and Tzigane du Berlais, trained by Pavel Tůma and ridden by Jan Faltejsek, both impressed.

The course at Pardubice was in good condition. I was disappointed that Czech Television again gave oxygen to the suggestion that the finishing straight had suffered serious damage in the winter months. The finishing straight is fine!

The next meeting at Pardubice is on Saturday, June 8th, when the main race will be the Pardubice Gold Cup, 4 400 metres, Listed, on the classical steeplechase course. The other meeting at Pardubice in June is on Sunday, June 23rd, when the main event will be the second VP qualification race.

The weekend of June 22nd - 23rd offers two particularly interesting meetings in the Czech Republic: Saturday, June 22nd is Czech Derby day at Prague Velká Chuchle, and Sunday, June 23rd is the June qualification raceday at Pardubice.

***

Photo: Marek Stromský, winning jockey on Hegnus. Photo by Petr Guth.

Czech Racing