'It’s like our little Cheltenham' - Jane Walton eyes more success on lucrative Racing Post Go North Finals Weekend

Jane Walton landed a valuable prize on last year’s Racing Post Go North Finals Weekend and the trainer hopes to win another big pot with runners entered at Musselburgh and Carlisle.

The three-day meeting, which takes place at Musselburgh on Friday, Kelso on Saturday and Carlisle on Sunday, offers prize-money of £30,000 for each final and provides lower-rated horses with a chance of securing valuable earnings for connections.

Uptown Harry holds entries for the 2m4f handicap chase series final – a race in which he won more than £15,000 when successful last year – and the 3m½f handicap chase series final, both at Carlisle. Although Walton...  has yet to decide on his target, she is excited about him taking his chance.

She said: "He’s in and we’ve aimed for these races this season because it’s like our little Cheltenham up here. The prize-money is definitely a good incentive. He likes Carlisle and he came right last year. He’s a big horse and he takes a lot to get right, but he ran a blinder over three miles last time. The ground dried out that day and I think it possibly suited him, but it’s not going to be like that this weekend.

"We’re going to wait until the declarations. He won over two and a half last year but I’m more tempted to go for the three-mile contest. My only concern is there’s horses rated 130 [Twoshotsoftequila] and 127 [Some Scope], so I’ll wait before I make my mind up."

Walton has also entered Eveque in the 3m½f handicap chase series final after he won at Sedgefield in January, but she said: "I don’t think he’ll get in. He qualified and it didn’t cost much to put the entry in, but he’s going to be way out the handicap. He’ll go to Hexham on Tuesday if not."

Before that, though, Walton is set to declare Noble Affair in the 2m4f mares' hurdle series final at Musselburgh on Friday.

She said: "She’s going well but we’ve been waiting for hopefully a bit of better ground. I don’t think we’re going to get it but we’ve not run her since she pulled up at Hexham. We knew we’d qualified so we’ve been training her to get here. Although we wanted to get another run into her, it’s not happened because it’s bottomless ground everywhere.

"It has just got wetter and I’m not sure what the ground at Musselburgh will be like. If it’s soft I think she’ll be okay."

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