WARZONE TOM produced a superb front-running performance to land his second GBGB Category One competition with victory in the Ladbrokes Summer Stayers Classic Final at Monmore on Saturday.

 

Trained by Liz and Rab McNair for the KSS Syndicate, last year’s Gold Collar champion and multiple big-race finalist was foot-perfect at the start in the £10,000 feature and soon set sail for home. However, Darbys Delight (Tom Heilbron) kept the winner under pressure in behind with a superb effort in defeat.

 

Always handy himself, the Newcastle raider closed on Warzone Tom approaching the penultimate bend and made a challenge off the last bend, only for the eventual winner to head him off and repel the challenge, before going on to score by one and a half lengths in 37.86sec (-25) for the 630m trip.

 

The staying-on Amaze Me Seb (Richard Rees) also starred, finishing a close-up third, but the night belonged to Warzone Tom and success for the August 2019 son of Good News and Bogger Bonnie came as a relief after a number of near-misses for the McNair kennel in major finals this year.

 

“I’m still actually feeling quite emotional about it,” said Rab McNair. “You try hard, really hard to win these competitions and we’ve got ourselves in a decent position and things haven’t just panned out. It gets in your head and you begin to question yourself, whether you’re doing the right thing.

 

“Then Havana Bale Out gets beaten when she’s a hot favourite to do so and you think it’s going to be one of those nights – again. We shouldn’t feel like that because I know how hard we work, but sometimes you do. I told Anna (Thompson) on RPGTV on Saturday I’d been praying every night – and that’s not far off the truth!

 

“Look, once again many thanks to the lads. Brendan (Keogh) and Simon (Senyk) were watching and I know they cheered him on. Tom has been such a great dog for the kennel. He went close to winning the Sussex Cup just a few weeks ago – and now this. That tells you what sort a dog he is – a pleasure to train.

 

“Thanks to Ladbrokes, to the management at Monmore, particularly Craig (Gardiner, Monmore racing manager) and to Ian Smyth at Entain. They helped us with the trial for Havana Lover and that was appreciated – it was an unusual situation and upset some, but most people agreed it was the right decision.

 

“Myself and Liz are off on a break now and I think we deserve it! It’s nice to go away having won one of the big races of the year and we’re very happy.”

 

Results: https://www.gbgb.org.uk/meeting/?meetingId=388371&raceId=867334