Moroder and Best hold off Undersupervision to edge Grimthorpe thriller

Around 2,000 students added a vocal element to Grimthorpe Chase day but nobody was making more noise than James Best after he claimed a surprise victory aboard 18-1 shot Moroder.

After emerging on the right side of an intense duel with Sam Twiston-Davies on last year's winner Undersupervision, Best roared with delight approaching the line and again after it. He perhaps saved the biggest cheer of all for the winner's enclosure as he stood up in his irons and punched the air.

Having won back-to-back Becher Chases not long ago, the experienced rider is no stranger to major success but it does not stop him enjoying it to the max.

"This is what it's all about," he proclaimed. "I might go a bit mental when I come to the line and I'm probably at fault for getting too high on the good days, but a lot of hard graft goes into the sport. Day in, day out you're up at five in the morning and you get knockbacks along the way, but you've got to pick yourself up and keep going."

That is exactly what winning trainer Seamus Mullins has done. He might not have the ammunition of his cousin Willie, but a winless run stretching back 61 days and 40 runners had been causing concern. To lift the dark clouds at his Salisbury stable in a race with the Grimthorpe's history was special.

"Winning any race is hard enough, let alone getting it right on a big day," said Mullins' son and assistant James. "It's been a little while for us and it's great to have it in a race like this. We'd had a drought. There's been nothing in particular and we were thinking of getting the specialists in, but Dad said let's wait another week and he's never far wrong."

Moroder (left) battles away with Undersupervision in the Grimthorpe Chase Credit: Nigel Kirby

With his father at Newbury with a runner, Mullins celebrated the victory with Best, who got a fine tune out of a horse who finished his novice campaign last season with four wins in a row but had not shown much in two starts this campaign.

"This horse had a great tailend of last season and always needs a first run back," Mullins said. "He had a couple of setbacks with a minor muscle tear and the frost, but we knew he was well today. We were coming to have a go and weren't necessarily thinking we were going to win, but we deserved to be here. And God, he's proved it!"

Plans are fluid for Moroder, who is unlikely to take up his Midlands Grand National entry with that coming "too soon after a hard race here", but Undersupervision has a different National on his agenda.

Trainer Nigel Twiston-Davies said: "It was a close one and he's run a really good race and nearly done it again. He'll go for the Scottish National now."

Recent Sky Bet Chase winner Cooper's Cross was sent off the 15-8 favourite and travelled well into the race before weakening after the second-last.

He was found to have bled from the nose after the race and trainer Stuart Coltherd said: "That's probably just stopped him on the run-in. I thought turning for home he had every chance. We'll get him home, make sure everything is 100 per cent and go from there."

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