Ballymac William produced an electrifying performance last night at Monmore as he took home the Ladbrokes Puppy Derby cup and awarded his camp with a prize of £12,000.
Trainer Carly Philpott was delighted with her dog William, who has shown great improvement on his times on each occasion. In the semi-finals he produced the best-of-night and best-of-the competition time of 28.27secs, and last night he upped the tempo even more and cleared the mark in 28.16secs.
William (5-4 favourite) was always looking good from the moment he had trapped, although Bower Eagle (8-1) did put William in the same scenario as the semis as he trailed behind and made William work hard for the title. Eagle eventually cleared the mark four-and-a-quarter lengths short of William, awarding trainer Pat Rosney with the runners-up prize of £1,000.
Philpott was also represented by Millies Hawk (6-4) who hadn’t trapped as well as Philpott had hoped, but took a respectable third in the competition, five-and-a-quarter lengths short of runner-up Eagle, clocking 28.92secs.
Champion trainer Mark Wallis and also trainer Barrie Draper, both of whom will be participating in the Betfair Trainers’ Championship next week had a disappointing night. Both trainers finished on the opposite end that they normally tend to be used to. Draper was represented by Farley Totti (6-1) who could only manage to clock 29.10secs, whilst Wallis’s Directors Spur (4-1) came in last in a sluggish 29.20secs.
Also on the downside for Wallis is Kinda Ready's Derby defence being in doubt - he states the dog has a toe problem and will definitely miss out on next Tuesday's Betfair Trainers' Championship. Kinda Ready is also under veterinary assessment in terms of coming back for the William Hill Derby.
Charlie Lister on the other hand seems to have his pack in great working order before the upcoming Championship and is looking the favourite at the moment.
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