'I thought I'd get loads of presents' - Birthday boy Callan enjoys double

Wednesday: Lingfield

Neil Callan celebrated his 44th birthday in style with a quickfire double on the card, headlined by Royal Mariner's success in the 6f nursery.

Callan, who finished second his first two rides, got off the mark for the day when Holkham Bay ran out a brave winner of the 6f novice. The James Tate-trained Royal Mariner then got the better of Rock Girl in the home straight to win by a length.

"I thought I'd get a load of presents, I asked for a load but didn't get any! We'll go for a family dinner to celebrate and it's nice to have a couple of winners too," Callan told Sky Sports Racing.

"We were quite confident he'd win. He's a nice horse who was a bit wayward early, but the visor has helped him from his last run. I think he'll progress."

Callan was unable to land a treble when favourite So Smart disappointed behind outsider Saaheq in the 5f handicap.

Ryan on a roll

Rossa Ryan warmed up for Newmarket's July festival in style after keeping up his fine run of form with victory on Global Style in the 1m4f selling handicap.

Ryan, who partners Coventry Stakes second Persian Force in the July Stakes on Thursday, took his strike-rate to 20 per cent with a three-quarter length success on the Tony Carroll-trained seven-year-old.

Fine form

Eve Johnson Houghton took her red-hot strike-rate to 30 per cent following Greg The Great's authoritative win in the opening mile handicap.

Results, replays and analysis

Sign up to receive On The Nose, our essential daily newsletter, from the Racing Post. Your unmissable morning feed, direct to your email inbox every morning.