Bizarre scenes as escaped greyhound pursues Sky Bet Chase field at Doncaster

If there were two performances to take out of Saturday's Sky Bet Chase one would undoubtedly be that of the winner Go Conquer, but the other may very well be the impressive display posted by a greyhound, who chased the 11-runner field throughout the latter stages of the £100,000 contest at Doncaster.

As the runners finished the first circuit of the three-mile test, the dog appeared on television pictures, running along the support track usually reserved for the battalion of vehicles that accompany every jumps race.

Such was the speed at which the dog was moving it managed to keep pace with the trailing and admittedly struggling On Tour, who was partnered by Mitchell Bastyan.

The jockey said: "I'd just come round the corner and I noticed the dog out the corner of my eye. My lad was having a little look at him, pricking his ears – he was giving us a bit of company in fairness and it might have helped us run on a little bit bit more."

Bastyan, who would eventually pull the 11-year-old up four fences from home but reported the veteran to be none the worse, added: "The dog was actually outpacing me so I thought I'd better pull up."

The scenes were reminiscent of the 1988 Cheltenham Gold Cup, when a dog escaped on to the racecourse proper and chased runners in the contest won by the David Nicholson-trained Charter Party.

Doncaster clerk of the course Roderick Duncan reflected: "The greyhound was on a walk with its owners and slipped its collar but stayed on the service road for the most part.

"The owners were very contrite," he added after confirming the dog, who as yet remains nameless, had soon been caught by the head groundsman and his team.

Duncan explained that Doncaster racecourse is, for the most part, located on public land and consequently it can be difficult to prevent members of the public from walking their dogs at the venue, even on racedays.

On the suggestion that the greyhound looked possibly well handicapped, Duncan responded: "We were wondering if he'd get an entry for next year!"

If anyone has anymore information relating to this canine drama, feel free to email editor@racingpost.com.

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