Floods hit Johnston's yard but the winners keep pouring in

Mark Johnston fears more than half of his all-weather gallop has been washed away by torrential rain but a record 50th winner of the month at least helped compensate.

Mrs Bouquet secured the landmark success in the 5f fillies’ conditions stakes after Sir Ron Priestley had earlier landed the 1m4f handicap.

But Johnston's thoughts turned to the situation at his yard in Middleham, Yorkshire, where part of his house was flooded, horses had to be moved out of waterlogged stables and less than half of his Tapeta gallop is still usable.

He said: “We’ve only got four of the ten furlongs of the gallop open. I don’t know how much repair the six furlongs affected will require. We’ll see when we get home.

Watch Sir Ron Priestley win the Unibet Handicap

"The house was flooded but I don’t know how badly. But there’s an awful lot of people worse off. Apparently, the rain was so bad people said they had never seen anything quite like it. I don’t think a gallop could survive that.

“I don’t know how other trainers in the village are affected, but we’re in the lower part. Luckily, we’ve got a good team at home to deal with it. We asked half-heartedly last night if we should come home but they said no.”

On his 50th winner of July, Johnston said: “We’ve had 47 before, so it was not beyond the realms of possibility. But it’s incredible, isn’t it? It’s fantastic.”

Mrs Bouquet’s win means Johnston now shares top spot for most Glorious Goodwood wins at 80 with Sir Michael Stoute.

Plot pays off for Prescott

For nearly a year Sir Mark Prescott waited to run Timoshenko, but for much of the spring his faith must have wavered.

Timoshenko: storms up the rail to land win the Unibet Goodwood HandicapCredit: Mark Cranham

Five months passed without a winner for the 71-year-old trainer, threatening the success of a plan conceived after Timoshenko’s fifth success in a row at Musselburgh in August.

But come July and the wins began flowing for Prescott, who watched Luke Morris steer Timoshenko up the rail to win the Unibet Goodwood Handicap and earn a 20-1 quote from Paddy Power for the Cesarewitch at Newmarket in October.

“He didn’t get here by accident,” said Prescott after his ninth Glorious Goodwood winner, 43 years since his first, Ringed Aureole. “It was very much the plan. And it’s nice when a plan comes off.”

Sir Mark Prescott: aims to run Timoshenko in the Cesarewitch for which he earned a 20-1 quoteCredit: Chris Bourchier

Lil Rockerfeller was sent off favourite to repeat last year’s win in the extended 2m4f contest, started by flag in front of the stands.

He harried Party Playboy for the lead up the straight before Timoshenko took advantage of a gap on the far rail to storm clear.

Prescott, wearing a tie and shirt combination matching the sky blue and orange colours of Middleham Park Racing, said after his 14th winner of the month: “The more active he is the better the result. It means they are going fast enough for him and he will stay. It’s one of those really happy days.

“He’ll run in the Cesarewitch next. That’s the second half of the plan.”

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