'He's an absolute terrier' - Cyclop gets up late to land Highland National

Brian Hughes stamped his mark on his final week as champion jockey with a surging finish to claim the William Hill Highland National on Cyclop.

The 12-1 shot, who is trained by Matt Sheppard, produced a strong late run to catch Mance Rayder in the closing stages of the race and win by a length.

It took a patient ride from Hughes to ensure a clean run for the ten-year-old among a series of blunders from the field, including Alminar, who crashed into the rails when falling two-out.

"He’s a little pony, he’s not very big, but he’s an absolute terrier of a horse," said Sheppard. “Brian Hughes gave him an awesome ride and the ground was lively enough for him.

“A lot of what comes next for Cyclop will depend on how he comes out of the race, but he’s had quite a long season so he'll probably have a break now.”

The seven-hour journey from Herefordshire was well worth the trip for Sheppard’s team, who had just two runners across the three-day festival. Tuesday's representative Broken Quest finished fifth in a three-mile handicap chase.

Cyclop was brought to Sheppard in January by his assistant trainer, David Dennis, who rode Omix D’Or to win the race in 2010.

Hughes has just one ride on the final day of the season at Sandown, where Harry Skelton will be crowned champion jockey.

Hot win for Chilli Filli

The Henry Daly-trained Chilli Filli stayed on gamely to secure her second Listed success in the 3m mares’ chase, bouncing back from a sixth-place effort at the Cheltenham Festival.

Sent off a 4-1 chance, she kept favourite Zambella at bay to give Daly and jockey Richard Patrick their second win of the meeting.

Results, replays and analysis

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