Paul Hanagan vs Richard Hughes- next round

Paul Hanagan may have sewn up victory in his quest for the jockeys championship by winning twice at Wolverhampton yesterday, but he is leaving nothing to chance and both he and challenger Richard Hughes, now 5 behind, ride in all 5 races open to them at Kempton this afternoon. The card is the usual modest mixture, with the best race a class 2 handicap over 10 furlongs at 16.25 CET. Hanagan partners Richard Fahey´s Changing the Guard here and Hughes Paul Cole´s Seradim, but the one to beat is probably Ottoman Empire (David Lanigan/ Richard Mullen), who is lightly-raced but has a good record here. Hanagan´s best chance is probably CD specialist Lord of the Reins (James Given) in the 5 furlongs handicap at 15.25, while Hughes can counter on Silvester Kirk´s Lady Lam, another with a good course record, half an hour later.

There is also flat racing at Catterick, where the card is even worse. The most interesting event is the 1 1/2 mile maiden at 16.15, with entries from such leading trainers as Stoute, Cecil and Gosden. However the ones that most interest us are the German-breds Local Hero (Steve Gollings/ Darryll Holland) and Gay Mirage (Michael Jarvis/ Philip Robinson), both of whom have shown some flashes of ability. The latter stays well, while Local Hero is stepping up in distance; however he is an own-brother to triple St. Leger winner Liquido, so that should not be a problem.