British Performance of the Week - 16 March 2026
There were three Category One competitions kicking off last week around the country, two had their semis, as well as the conclusion of a couple of Category Two events.
Three Category One competitions get underway
On what was the busiest week of the year so far for quality action, there were a couple who produced spectacular runs in their respective Category One competitions. Scooby The Lady has gradually been building to a performance like hers at Central Park in the opening round of the Arena Racing Company Kent Plate, tickling the clock with her flying win. She has been handed a more than workable semi-final next week and would add plenty to the decider if she makes it that far.
The Ladbrokes Puppy Derby kicked off with an unreal run from Underground Gold. He was making just the fifth start of his career and produced a run that ranks in the top 15 all time over Monmore's 480m trip. Proper Heiress and Gary The Arb went quicker last year, then Links Maverick in 2023 but we need to go all the way back to 2017 to find the next time that was quicker. Hopefully his star continues to shine brightly.
A third Category One competition to host its opening round on Saturday night was the bet365 Hunt Cup where Venetian Mick added to his excellent Oxford 650m tally. He went unbeaten through the BetGoodwin Series Maiden Stayers back in November and has a clear affinity for this circuit.
This evening's final of the BGBF British Breeders Stakes will have four runners for Patrick Janssens lining up, with Romeo Ability the current holder of the POW title after his win in the semis seven days back. There is not much between a few of them, so the draw will play an all-important role in who lifts the trophy and probably wins POW next week.
It was semi-final day at Romford for the Coral Golden Sprint where there were some big shocks. Bombay Buck kicked off a great weekend for Paul Young with his win in the quickest of the three times, and he heads the market for what looks to be a wide open final this coming Friday night.
The final of the Category Two Queen Mother Memorial Cup on Sunday afternoon at Sheffield was Droopys Flare., She has been a model of consistency in staying races since the start of 2025, sent off at very short odds to pick up the competition. There is no doubt that she deserves to pick up one at the top table having made three finals, finishing runner-up in a pair of them.
Towcester have the countdown firmly on to the 2026 Star Sports and Orchestrate English Greyhound Derby with the start of the trial stakes for the big event. Salacres Lock Up has been showing all sorts of early gears at the track already this year and put down the first marker for the big one with a visually impressive win on Sunday afternoon.
Dunstall Park was a tricky decision as the reigning POW winner Bogger Cash went quicker with his win on Saturday night than he had the week prior. Sadly for him, Goldcash Warrior dipped under 28 seconds for Nathan Hunt, the first runner to do so in 2026 to just pip the stayer to the award.
Gothic Joshua is clearly enjoying life at Doncaster, adding a Category Three win to his resume on Saturday night. He is not just a Donny dog though, impressive when scoring at Newcastle on Arc Northern Puppy Derby final night. 450m and 483m both appear to suit himself just as well at Stainforth and it will be interesting to see how high connections aim with him this summer.
There was an excellent sprint win at Star Pelaw from Wanted Tibet. She had been running over 435m for the last few weeks having made a winning debut at the track over two bends. This distance looks to suit her better, stopping the clock in 14.31. That is just three spots off the track record set by Brynoffa Pippy last summer.
Another smart sprint on the week came from Gothic Opera at Suffolk Downs. It was his first win in almost four months but you'd not have known that the way he went about his business. He has now won four of his last six when sporting the white jacket.
At Sunderland there were limited options for strong times but Crafty Regalo produced a decent run to win on Friday night. He is only just over two with just 20 career starts, so there could still be a little bit more to come from him further down the line.
The opens at the Valley on Sunday morning saw a solid sprint win from Seeking Times. He had lost his way a little bit over the last couple of months having been a regular D1 winner late last year. This might be what he needs to get some confidence back and start to rack up those victories again.
It was a slow track at Hove on Thursday night for their opens so the times were not anything flashy. Droopys Alldeway produced the pick of them to give Paul Young another POW winner, showing the best pace to the bend to hold off Hove's winner from last week, Brunch Pal.
Newcastle's A1 on Thursday night saw Howay Tonali put some distance into her rivals early off a very smart 4.54 split. She eventually ran out a three and three-quarter length winner, stopping the clock in the quickest time that she has done so far in her career.
Rolo Sabbath took the honours at Yarmouth courtesy of his A1 success on Saturday. He finished three-quarters of a length behind Chelms Charmer the week prior, when Craig Morris's winner took the POW award. He reversed that this time around to come out a length and a quarter to the good.
At Kinsley it was a sprint win from Ballymac Dalton that sealed the deal, his fourth win in his last eight starts. Two of those, including this one, came in top grade events, a strong runner over the 268m distance.
It was also a sprinter that took the win at Harlow where Royston Rocket produced his best run over two bends for 11 months. He is almost at 100 races now but it was a fourth win in five runs, so there is little sign of him slowing down.
