'He gave him the perfect ride' - Robert Walford leads praise for Harry Kimber after Prince Quali strikes late

Robert Walford heaped praise on jockey Harry Kimber after he struck with Prince Quali in the feature 2m handicap chase.

The conditional rider, who was claiming 3lb, steered his mount to back-to-back course-and-distance victories when chasing down the Paul Nicholls-trained Sans Bruit after producing a mighty leap at the final fence.

The seven-year-old provided Kimber with his 24th success of the campaign and Walford believes his performance in the saddle played a big part in the win.

"I’m delighted," said Walford. "I told Harry that he must not hit the front too soon and he gave him the perfect ride.

"I think it was a slightly deeper race than last time but he seems to like it round here."

The Dorset-based trainer has now enjoyed five winners from 13 runners in the past fortnight, and he added: "We’ve got them in good form now, which is nice because we’ve had a difficult year with some ill horses. It’s great to see them in this form."

Strong form continues

Harry Derham registered a third winner across the Easter weekend as Il Va De Soi scored in the 2m3½f handicap hurdle.

Derham moved on to 36 victories for the season as his six-year-old followed up wins from stablemates Brentford Hope and Kansas City Star at Haydock and Plumpton on Saturday and Sunday respectively.

Impressive run

Jockey Lorcan Williams moved to within one victory of equalling his career-best tally of winners after partnering the Jeremy Scott-trained Bonza Boy in the 2m3½f handicap chase.

Williams, who is operating at a 42 per cent strike-rate in the past fortnight, moved on to 22 winners for the campaign and is close to levelling his tally from two seasons ago.  

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