News & Results

 

23.6.2008

BENHEGO MAKES HANDICAP DEBUT AT WINDSOR

An encouraging run into 7th place in his first handicap race was the outcome for BENHEGO at Windsor this evening.  He was running on well at the line in this 1 mile 3 furlong race and trainer Stuart Williams was well satisfied with the effort, which was made possibly on slightly too firm going for his liking, despite a less-than-ideal draw.  Click here for full result.

Meanwhile Tapaellya was unable to give us a fairy-tale start to her British racing career in her debut at Lingfield, also finishing unplaced and possibly needing longer distance races in order to be competitive.

18.6.2008

MEMBERS AND GUESTS HAVE FUN DAY AT ROYAL ASCOT

Members and guests of Essex Racing Club enjoyed a super day at Royal Ascot on Wednesday, despite bitterly cold winds and very little sunshine, with large quantities of excellent food kindly provided by Denyse and Nigel Lea being consumed, together with an appropriate supply of liquid refreshment!  Financial gains were apparently at a premium but this did not stop the requests to do it all again in 2009!

 

28.5.2008

RACE SPONSORED AT GREAT LEIGHS OPEN DAY

Great Leighs Racecourse opened it's doors to the public today and Essex Racing Club were pleased to be involved with the sponsorship of a race on this historic occasion, also taking the opportunity to promote Membership during the day. The "Essex Racing Club Handicap" was won by Came Back, trained by Kevin Ryan, and Joan Root presented the winning connections with their prizes.

26.5.2008

BENHEGO QUALIFIES FOR HANDICAPS

Following Benhego's latest race at Leicester today, in which he finished eighth, the three year-old will now qualify for handicap races.  The rain which had been hoped for and which hit most of the South of the country, did not reach Leicester, where the track conditions were officially Good to Firm, and according to jockey William Carson, Benhego was not comfortable on this quick ground and did not really relax sufficiently to get in a challenge in this seven furlong contest.

For full result click here

15.5.2008

BERMACHA FIFTH IN NEWMARKET HANDICAP

In a race dominated by the two market leaders, Bermacha ran into a creditable fifth position in a competitive looking mile handicap at Newmarket this evening. Held up from her wide draw she made good progress in the final half of the race and was running on well at the finish though never looking a threat to the eventual winner Maghya.

For the full race record click here

1.5.2008

STEADY PROGRESS FOR BENHEGO

Benhego showed some encouraging signs in his second race this evening at Great Leighs, finishing a modest eighth from thirteen runners after a slowish start from the gates, but making progress and running on at the end in this quite competitive Maiden Race for three and four year-olds, dominated by horses from the big Newmarket yards.   Improving on his debut, jockey Saleem Golam said he was quite happy on this surface, though probably wanting ultimately a longer distance, so we could possibly return to Great Leighs for his next race.

For full race record click here  

29.4.2008

BERMACHA'S PROGRESS HAMPERED AT WINDSOR

The result will show that Bermacha finished eighth of the fourteen runners at Windsor

last evening but that fails to recognise the true outcome of this Mile Handicap race.  Following a promising start, our filly progressed into a comfortable third place and looked well set to make a challenge for honours a furlong out, but was badly hampered and squeezed up to such an extent that jockey Richard Mullen could do nothing to get back on terms before the finish.  We therefore take the positives from the race as once again Bermacha showed she has the desire and ability to challenge at this level, and should not be too long in racing again.

For full result click here

 

18.4.2008

COUNTY HOTEL SIGNS SPONSORSHIP DEAL WITH CLUB

The Club has entered into a membership and sponsorship arrangement with The County Hotel in Chelmsford, which is situated only approximately ten minutes drive from the new Great Leighs Racecourse, which will see the hotel's name and logo featured in various aspects of the club's activities and on the website, including on one of the club's racehorses.

A forthcoming Club event will be held at the hotel - further details in due course.

15.4.2008

BERMACHA PLACED IN SEASONAL DEBUT

It was our three year-old filly's turn to start her season at Nottingham on Tuesday, and we were rewarded with an encouraging 3rd place at 28/1 in the Mile Handicap chosen by William Muir as her first race for this year.The ground turned very soft after prolonged rain before and during racing, and this was a factor in preventing BERMACHA from getting closer to the favourite and eventual winner Jaser according to jockey Martin Dwyer, and she was beaten by around nine lengths.Tucked in nicely from the start in about third place, she challenged for the lead at around two furlongs out, but failed to quicken sufficiently to mount a serious challenge right to the line.  However we can be happy with this start and hope for easier ground as we look forward to her next race.

For full result click here

14.4.2008

SUCCESSFUL PRESENTATION EVENING FOR CLUB

A highly-successful Presentation Evening was held at the Windmill Inn, Chatham Green near Great Leighs on Monday, when over 20 people attended to hear a presentation about the racing club and racehorse ownership by Manager Barry Root. The session included a video about racehorse ownership, and was followed by a questions and answer session, and an excellent buffet provided by hosts Peter and Elaine Rollings.  A number of people signed up to become members of the club on the evening, and further evenings of this sort are to be planned elsewhere in Essex in the coming months.

13.4.2008

BENHEGO DEBUT RUN AT BRIGHTON

 

Our three year-old gelding BENHEGO made a satisfactory start to his racing career at Brighton on Sunday without ever looking like getting near the winner, being pipped for fourth place in a photo in this mile Maiden Race.  He was a little sluggish out  of the stalls but settled behind the rest of the pack, never too far off the pace, and when asked to accelerate in the home straight by jockey Saleem Golam, he continued to run on well to the line but finishing about seven lengths back.  He will have learned from this first run, and looked as if he will be suited by a longer trip according to trainer Stuart Williams.

For full result click here

 

9. 4. 2008

CLUB THREE YEAR-OLDS READY FOR SEASONAL DEBUT

Trainers William Muir and Stuart Williams announced that the club's three year-olds BENHEGO (yet to make his racecourse debut) and BERMACHA are now ready to go to the races, with entries being made for races at Brighton on Sunday 13th April and Tuesday 15th April at Nottingham respectively.

21.2.2008

FRENCH-BRED WINNING FILLY JOINS RACING CLUB

Tapaellya, a four-year old daughter of Tobougg and a winner in France in 2007, has been acquired to run in the colours of the Racing Club for the 2008 season.  A Deauville Yearling Sale purchase for €34,000, the filly was trained by Henri-Alex Pantall and has been placed eight times in addition to her win over one and a half miles. She will be trained by John Long in Surrey.

20.2.2008

GREAT LEIGHS ANNOUNCE START DATE

Great Leighs Racecourse have now announced that Sunday 20th April will be their first race day following a further inspection by the British Horseracing Authority.  The first racecourse to be opened in the UK for eighty years, Chairman and Owner John Holmes was delighted to be able to report this good news at last, after a number of delays had moved the project back from its' originally intended start date.  See the full report on the Great Leighs website.

8.2.2008

FEBRUARY DINNER

The Club's February Dinner was held at the new Purple Hotel at Notley Cross, Braintree, Essex, on Friday 8th February at 7.30pm, where around 30 members and their guests enjoyed a three-course meal and welcomed trainers Stuart Williams and John Long. Tickets for the evening were SOLD OUT in advance, and a Spring Dinner is now being arranged - details available soon.

Manager Barry Root gave a progress report about the club's promotional activities and the latest position regarding Great Leighs Racecourse, and Stuart Williams gave an update relating to our three-year-old BENHEGO, who it is hoped should be ready for his racecourse debut in around three to four weeks time.

 

22.11.2007

CLUB DINNER HELD AT ARMY & NAVY CLUB, LONDON

                                             

The club's Annual Dinner was held at The Army & Navy Club in London on Thursday

22nd November 2007, where the guest speaker was one of racing's best known

and respected journalists, Tony Stafford, who worked for thirty years at The Daily Telegraph. Forty-five members and guests, including trainer William Muir and his wife Janet,

enjoyed a Champagne Reception kindly sponsored by Anglo Hibernian Bloodstock Insurance Services Ltd and Saxon Marketing Finance, followed by a three-course dinner with wine.

Following the success of this evening, a further Dinner is planned for early 2008.

 

25.10.2007

BERMACHA A SEVEN-LENGTH WINNER IN WOLVERHAMPTON MAIDEN

Bermacha got her deserved first win as a two year-old in grand style at Wolverhampton on Thursday, taking the Mile Maiden Auction race by seven lengths under a fine ride by stand-in jockey Jamie Spencer, who took over from booked jockey Richard Mullen, stranded due to traffic problems.

Sent off at 5/4 favourite, our filly settled nicely in third place from her stall 2 draw and when the jockey asked her to quicken, she eased into the lead at the start of the home straight and was never in danger of being caught.  Her winning margin of seven lengths from second-favourite Fair Gate was certainly impressive, and a number of Club members were present to receive their victorious filly into the winner's enclosure.

For full race record click here          

12.10.2007

ANOTHER SECOND FOR BERMACHA

Our filly ran yet another sound race at Wolverhampton this evening and despite the outside draw in stall 10, she once again looked the winner a couple of furlongs out when jockey Richard Mullen took her to the front after making good progress up the back straight.  However she was caught by the fast finishing Race The Moon (whom Bermacha had beaten at Kempton previously), who had the joy of a run throughout up the inside rails, and so had to settle for second place for the second race running.

Yet another honest performance by a filly who won't give up, and she certainly deserved better from these past two performances.

For the full race record click here

3.10.2007

SECOND PLACE FOR BERMACHA AT KEMPTON

Bermacha once again had to settle for a place when beaten by a short head into 2nd place in yet another excellent race for our brave filly at Kempton this evening.  Another fine start saw her settle only a few lengths from the leaders round this mile trip, and when the runners went into the home straight, jockey William Buick asked the filly to quicken, and she went into the lead about two furlongs out.  With our group of members encouraging her home all the way to the line, she was just caught by the fast finishing Distant Diamond and lost the race in a photo-finish.

This was another fine run by Bermacha, and we should surely soon be celebrating a win based on this performance.

For the full result click here

 

19.9.2007

BERMACHA THIRD IN EXCITING KEMPTON MAIDEN

An exciting finish at Kempton last evening saw BERMACHA run her best race to date and only fail by a whisker to get to the winning line first, when finishing 3rd in this first-time effort over a mile. She was given an excellent start by jockey William Buick and settled a few places from the leader, and in the run up the home straight she looked for space up the inside of the track, finishing with a strong run only to be headed by Mark Johnston's horse and the odd's on favourite (who ran off a handicap mark of 73) La Columbina. This was a good effort on a day of success for trainer William Muir, who had two winners (one at Sandown and one at Kempton) and two placed horses.

Full result click here

27.8.2007

KEAGLES RETURNS TO HANDICAP ACTION

Following an extended time off the track due to the viral problems at John Long's yard in

Surrey, KEAGLES was given an outing at Yarmouth over a previously-untried 1 mile 6 furlongs on sunny Bank Holiday Monday.  The runners went off at a hectic pace, with our

filly settling in second-place from her outside draw under jockey Natalia Gemelova.  The

extra distance had been chosen mainly because of lack of suitable alternatives and the earlier belief that our filly did not have the finishing speed to compete at the lesser

distances.  However her most recent work had seen an improvement in her finishing

speed, and in this race she held on well for all but the last furlong and quickly was relegated to 11th place as the other runners stayed on better.  We are somewhat optimistic despite

her low finishing position that she can return to 1 mile 2 furlongs or 1 mile 4 furlongs on

good ground with some hope of success, as this was a much improved performance overall.

 

25.8.2007

STUART WILLIAMS-TRAINED BENHEGO MAKES PROGRESS

Members had the opportunity to see our ACT ONE gelding BENHEGO at the stable visit

on Saturday.  A strong individual, still growing but progressing well and therefore not yet ready to move on to fast work was how trainer Stuart Williams described our two year-old.

He was seen doing a couple of good canters at Newmarket's Racecourse Side gallops

prior to members having an enjoyable luncheon at Swynford Paddocks Hotel.

18.7.2007 and 4.8.2007

BERMACHA MAKES STEADY PROGRESS IN MAIDENS

Following the satisfactory debut race at Goodwood, Bermacha had to wait a few weeks

for her follow-up races, as on a couple of occasions the heavy rainfall caused unacceptable conditions underfoot, and so a run on the all-weather track at Lingfield was chosen to ensure she continued her progress in Maiden races. She was unplaced but still had the

hot favourite for the race behind her, finishing about four and a half lengths behind the winner in 8th place.  Her return to the turf at Windsor unfortunately found the going this

time too firm and although running well into 6th place from 15 runners, jockey Saleem Golam said she definately did not seem totally at home on this surface, and suggested

easier going would suit her when she started her efforts in Nursery Races.

Following this run, the official handicapper placed a rating of 61 on Bermacha.

24.5.2007

BERMACHA HAS PROMISING DEBUT IN GOODWOOD MAIDEN

The Club's first two year-old runner for 2007,our Bertolini filly named BERMACHA,

finished a promising 5th place in a  6 furlong Maiden Race at sunny Goodwood today.

Drawn in stall 12 of the 13 runners, she suffered some early traffic problems but

soon settled and ran on well at the finish, pleasing trainer William Muir and jockey

Stephen Drowne with her attitude and overall performance.  She should come on

for this first effort on a racecourse, and we can look forward with some

encouragement to her next effort.

 

18.4.2007
NEWMARKET RACE DAY AND STABLE VISIT A BIG SUCCESS

The first day of Newmarket’s Craven Meeting for 2007 was chosen for a Members and Guests stable visit, luncheon and afternoon at the races, and on a gloriously sunny day, our group had an enjoyable and generally profitable day.

The morning consisted of a tour of trainer Stuart Williams’ stables, where we were able to see our new ACT ONE two year-old named BENHEGO fresh from his morning work.  He looked a tall, powerful individual, and showed an excellent temperament whilst being paraded.  Stuart was quite happy with how he had worked so far, mentioning that as he is a big horse, he is not pushing him too hard too soon.

Luncheon was held in the Augusta Room at the lovely Swynford Paddocks Hotel just outside Newmarket, where members enjoyed lunch with wine and met our celebrity “tipster” for the day, who gave members a string of win and place tips for the afternoon, most of which ensured members went home very happy indeed!

6.3.2007
MEMBERS NAME NEW TWO YEAR-OLDS

In the competition arranged for members of the club to suggest the names of the new two year-old horses in training, the following were successful:

Bertolini Filly -  named BERMACHA – suggested by John Winter
Act One Colt – named BENHEGO – suggested by Willie Paterson.

Congratulations to our winners and thank you to everyone who participated.