Graph plots first major point on the road to the Derby

Droopys Graph the star at Towcester

Patrick Janssens had a pair winners on the Towcester card on Sunday afternoon. Droopys Graph took the scalp of his own kennelmate Slick Sentinel in a contest that should have a bearing on the ante-post market for the 2026 Star Sports and Orchestrate Derby. Bet365 reacted by cutting him to 25/1, with 33/1 still freely available elsewhere. 

The afternoon started well for Janssens as Droopys Plunge produced a 15.89 (-10) trial before racing, but it will have been the win of Droopys Graph that will have set the tongues wagging for the same syndicate. His 28.87 was solid enough but it was the way that he kept Slick Sentinel at bay that will have really impressed.

Fabulous Aria produced another win earlier on in the afternoon for Janssens, her fifth since the start of an autumn campaign that saw her sent off favourite in the final of the Premier Greyhound Racing Oaks at Dunstall Park. Eight straight starts now she has finished either first or second. 

Fresh off the Arena Racing Company Cesarewitch win on Saturday night, there was a double at the track for Mark Wallis. Newinn Tonic got the ball rolling with a visually impressive success over four bends. She dipped under four seconds on the split before stretching that lead to six and a quarter lengths by the time they got back to the winning line again.

The double was brought up by an impressive sprint win from Crafty Alejandro. Despite being a September 22 whelp, he has felt like a bit of a work in progress for the Wallis team, showing ability, but this was his first win since a 13.35 effort at Romford in mid-September. 

Heather Dimmock landed a staying contest, with the market correctly predicting that her Chasing Rachel was the one to be on for the kennel rather than recent double scorer Coffee Time Guys. It was only the fourth run in this country for the winner and a third win after making a fluent UK debut over six bends last time out. 

An earlier six-bend contest had gone the way of Frank Gray's Essjay Robin. It was all over bar the shouting from the third bend as the odds-on favourite cruised into the lead, running riot by almost 10 lengths.

The other open on the card was won by Broadway Lord for Sean White. He was breaking his duck at the fifth time of asking in the UK, arriving on these shores off the back of a slick sprint win at Lifford that would end up as the seventh fastest time of 2025 over 325y there.

Oxford sees Hutton at the double

Baran Tombstone got himself on the scoresheet for the first time since November for Hutton to close out a double on the Oxford card. It was his sixth win from 19 starts, though things have been tough for him of late, he showed the early pace that made him look potentially very smart when he burst onto the scene last summer. 

Hutton's double was started by Signet Bucko in a messy puppy contest. It was already the third open race win of his short career so far, showing plenty of early dash form the inside box. He won from three last week and chartered more of a middle line again.

Eagles Respect continued his love affair with the track to land a deep six-bend contest for Angie Kibble. When a bitch of the class of Alright Patricia is 25/1, the quality is there, with Ballymac Madgie chasing the winner home. 

David Lewis still managed to get a winner on the card as Alright Twinkle produced a 26.65 success over 450m. She turned close to the speed to back up her win from last week and looks to be thriving at present. 

Track record part of three winners for Rose Draper at Sheffield

The Sheffield Invitationals were plentiful yesterday with eight in total. The pick of them was a new track record over 280m from Swift Hostile (15.61).

Sunnyside Jayden was sent off favourite but he had no answer to the winner who took off from the lids. The winner had dead-heated in his only other run in 2026 but there was no danger of anything being able to pick him up on Sunday.

Draper kicked the afternoon off with a win from Rocking Taylor in another sprint contest. He is right at the top of the tree when it comes to local sprinters and sporting his trapping boots, he quickly had the contest under control. 

The two-bend treble was rounded out by Hoyland Lad, backing up a success from last week. He is not a natural trapper for a sprinter but once he gets into full cry, he is clearly a force to be reckoned with. A May puppy, there's more to come from him later in the year.

Impressive times piled up across the card over all trips. Bouncing Monarch enjoyed his first run back at the track since the BresBet Steel City Cup final back in October. David Fradgley's youngster has won six of his last eight starts, adding a 28.74 500m success to his recent wins at Newcastle and Doncaster.

Over 480m it was Flashing Fender who produced the goods, scoring in 27.56 for Craig Morris. He has been very hard to beat at his home track of Yarmouth of late and he had no trouble getting the job done comfortably from the front at a different venue.

Diane Henry got on the scoresheet over six bends with Savanaregimental. A 39.05 would have been the fourth quickest time of 2025, on top of the ranking in the early stages of this year. Unconsidered in the market at 16/1, he turned over the odds-on favourite Very Elegant who had finished a couple of lengths in front of the winner a fortnight back.

Another six-bend contest on the card went to Richie Taberner's Holding Gina. It was her first try in a staying race, getting on the bunny early and was able to maintain the gallop. Savva Roberts took the other 500m contest on the afternoon with Born Scooby. He'd shown plenty of promise for Roberts but had been unable to add to his sole Kilkenny success until now. 

Rawlings lands three at Valley

There were opens at Valley as well on a busy Sunday where Adrian Rawlings led the charge with an 'Ashway' treble. June, Diva and Cruiser were the three sporting the Ashway prefix in question, all winning for the first time at the track since moving over from Swindon when the track closed. 

The win of June was the pick of the trio, beating a very solid local yardstick in Droopys Nijinsky, stopping his winning streak at six in the process. A litter sister to Ballinabola Joe, she was an open race winner at Swindon back in August as well.

Time of the day was set by Clongeel Bono for Charlie Darch. He was able to turn on the bunny yesterday which made all the difference to him with his 28.30 comfortably the quickest time of the year at the track so far. 

A big surprise came in the staying contest with a 25/1 winner in the shape of Tony Morgan's Mallogs Roy. October 5 was the last time that he got his head in front but he looked well suited to the step up in trip for the first time.