King reigns but Down Royal hit again

Racing: A record 18,332-strong crowd thronged Leopardstown for yesterday's famous St Stephen's Day meeting but 100 miles to the north in Down Royal it was a very different Christmas story with thousands of people having to be evacuated after just one race due to another bomb scare.

On a day when Irish racing again demonstrated its rude good health with Kicking King completing back-to-back victories in the King George VI Chase, and Feathard Lady winning the Christmas Hurdle on the same Sandown card, events were a lot more downbeat just outside Belfast.

Last month Down Royal lost its most valuable race day due to what turned out to be a bomb hoax. Yesterday the holiday crowd had to be quickly evacuated after two coded phone calls claimed there were bombs in the racecourse buildings.

"It's unbelievable that it has happened again but we are determined not to let them beat us," said Down Royal's manager Michael Todd.

In a surprise move Horse Racing Ireland subsequently decided to reschedule to today the remaining six races that weren't run yesterday. The first will be off at 1pm this afternoon.

The HRI chief executive Brian Kavanagh said: "It might cause some problems but we feel it is more important that the meeting is run. The stewards on the day will have to deal with situations about jockeys not being available to ride but the important thing is that we reschedule."

There was a very different atmosphere at Leopardstown where a record St Stephen's Day crowd had their betting boots on with a vengeance.

A total of 1,415,627 was bet with the bookmakers alone, a close on 200,000 increase on the corresponding figure last year. Tote turnover was also up 33,000 to 544,906 to complete a statistical Christmas present to the authorities at the track.

The featured 100,000 Durkan New Homes Novice Chase was eventually won by 10 to 1 shot Missed That who beat the second favourite Wild Passion by a length and a half. Hot favourite Justified unseated his rider Shay Barry at the first.

Missed That is now as low as 8 to 1 for the Arkle Trophy at Cheltenham and he completed a very good day for trainer Willie Mullins and jockey David Casey.

The partnership also landed the main supporting race, the Grade Two Juvenile Hurdle, with the 14 to 1 outsider Clear Riposte who was three lengths too good for the runner-up, Artist's Muse.

At Sandown Tom Taaffe emulated his legendary father Tom Snr by training Kicking King to back-to-back wins in the King George VI Chase. Barry Geraghty guided the current Gold Cup winner to a narrow neck success over Monkerhostin with Tony McCoy's mount Impek back in third.

"He's just a class act," said Geraghty afterwards. "I'd hoped they'd go a fast pace on good ground but they didn't. Instead the ground was very dead. But he is something serious. He's won one Gold Cup - I can't see why he can't win another one."

Taaffe confirmed a double attempt at the Cheltenham Gold Cup will be next and added: "The battle plan now is to down the hatches altogether until March."

Feathard Lady is as low as 5 to 1 for the Champion Hurdle after stretching her unbeaten record to seven under Ruby Walsh in a decisive Christmas Hurdle display. Her trainer Colm Murphy has another Champion Hurdle contender in Brave Inca and the pair will clash in the AIG at Leopardstown next month. "To win the way she did is something else," said Murphy.

The feature at Leopardstown today is the 190,000 Paddy Power Chase but all eyes will be on Moscow Flyer an hour earlier when, under Barry Geraghty, he bids to win the Dial-A-Bet Chase for a third time.