Woltemade and Fortanach Col take Monmore glory

Picture from Monmore X feed

Fenwick and Wilton take Monmore prizes

The Ladbrokes Gold Cup final saw a third Category One win for Woltemade this year. Trainer Jimmy Fenwick won Greyhound of the Year with Wicky Ned in 2024 and this son of Ballymac Finn could be in the reckoning given his record. He had had 15 races this year, making five finals, four Cat One and a Cat Two, winning all bar the Gymcrack, turning into an exceptional performer. 

It is his early pace that sees him stand out from his peers, leading up Slingshot Poppy before the benefit of the inside allowed her to take up the running into the back. The winner proved too strong for her from the three-quarters mark, with Grouchos Gregor running on well to grab second for Kelly Wilton, almost giving her a spectacular double. 

Slingshot Poppy faded out of things having been headed, ending up in fourth as Headford Cian grabbed her for third close to the line. The field were whipped in by Scooby Diamond and Headford Dane.  

Just 20 minutes earlier there had been a superb conclusion to the Ladbrokes Summer Stayers Classic. Fortanach Col had shown the best pace after a level break, driving the opening bend to go around in front. The Time 3 Steps To Victory champion was making just his fourth start in a staying contest, winning all of them.

Turning behind the winner was Droopys Bookem. The former Derby semi-finalist has taken the return to six bends really well, producing one of the runs of his life to only go under by a neck. Zenith Pasha lost nothing in defeat in third place, keeping on well after finding trouble in the manner of one who might just appreciate the longer trip of the St Leger at Dunstall Park.

Both Droopys Deploy and Betgoodwin Tutts were slow into stride and that was their chances gone, with no way of getting back into a race won from the front. Tooreen Rose was with them early but her effort petered out. 

The defending Summer Stayers Classic champion was in action on the undercard over 684m. Vhagar was sent off the 1/9 market leader to add to her excellent record at this venue and that is exactly what she did, though off a slightly slower getaway than would have been ideal. 

There was a double on the card for Mark Wallis with another Monmore expert scoring in Armagh Daithi. He went a perfect 4/4 over this 480m distance back in April but has been a little more inconsistent since. He smashed the lids down and took instant control of his rivals to run out a comfortable winner. 

David Page grabbed a double on the card, with his Wise Tournament adding another success to her resume. She has been one of the stories of 2026 at this venue, winning eight of her last 12 starts with two of those four defeats coming in the heats and semis of the Gold Cup. She was electric from the lids and with plenty of stamina in the tank as well, she was never going to be coming back.

Page doubled up in the very next race with 7/1 scorer Caldera Flow. He had fallen at the first hurdle in the Summer Stayers Classic but produced a very smart 12.41 split (exactly the same as Fortanach Col) to get himself to the front on the inside early.

Darceys Dude opened the card with a puppy contest win for Craig Morris. He was another on the card who got to the front at an early stage and stayed there to make it two wins in three starts for the kennel. That sole defeat came in a heat of the Arc Puppy Classic at Nottingham when getting badly hampered at the opening bend. 

There was also a sprint win for Morris courtesy of Rockmount Kellie. This is the fifth different track that she has won an open at in 2026, She showed the best pace to the opening turn, building up enough of a lead to fend off the late challenge from Crafty Alejandro.  

One final trainer to pick up a pair of winners on the card was Maxine Locke. Headford Fiona just missed out by a spot of making it into the top 10 sprint times of the year but she made up for a short head defeat at this track last time out with a slick win from the front. 

Droopys Pioneer had got the double started, taking the Peter Billingham Memorial final. He turned handy before showing too much middle pace for his rivals to handle, which was just as well as he was being closed down again come the line.

The final race of the evening saw Nathan Hunt pick up a win with Vixons Ricchezze. It was run over the shorter of the sprint trips, the rarely used 210m trip where the short run to the first bend seemed to suit him, despite not coming away. He paced up well into the lead and that was enough. 

Diane Henry grabbed a win with Grouchos Cossie. He has enjoyed an excellent start to life with this kennel at his home track of Sheffield, but this was his first win on the road. He has eight wins in 16 starts for Henry and is a decent type.

James shows he can in Irish Derby as doubles rule

Three trainers picked up a pair of winners in the heats of the third round of the BOYLE Sports Irish Greyhound Derby at Shelbourne on Saturday night. 

Wi Can James was the fastest of the winners as part of a brace for Patrick Guilfoyle. He was already second favourite for the competition outright before last night and his 29.10 win saw him joint quickest so far in terms of win time. A 27.88 scorer over the 525y trip at this track in July, it will be interesting to see just how quick he can go over this distance. 

Just three spots slower than his Guilfoyle kennelmate was Waitingforastar. His early pace got him to the front ahead of the opening bend and taking that pole position allowed him to avoid all of the trouble behind and run out a wide-margin winner. Unbeaten in this competition, he has improved a good chunk with each of those.

Quickest in the opening two rounds was Bouncing Monarch for Michael O'Donovan. Although he was only joint second quickest on the night, it was another exceptional run from the flashy fawn. He is in rude heath with himself at present, quickly on the bunny. His three winning times in this competition so far are 29.10, 29.11 and 29.13. How's that for consistency?

There was another Derby double for O'Donovan as Hackney Dancer extended his unbeaten record in the competition. He arrived fresher than most after not making a start since his semi-final defeat in the Produce Stakes back in May, and that could be a benefit to his longevity in the Derby. His splits have improved with each round which is worth noting.

The first heat of the night was won by Graham Holland's Bombay Special. She had a decent buckle with Grouchos Chief, leading early before the runner-up took over around the opening bend, battling on to get her head back in front when it was needed as they turned for home. 

Holland doubled up in the very next heat with Bockos Gold, although this heat saw the end of the Bockos Diamond Derby campaign as he could only finish fifth. The winner is another in the competition that has taken a decent step forward with each round, doing the best of his work late on. 

Coloursaregreen grabbed a win for Paul Hennessy, always close enough to the pace before getting to the front halfway down the back. The Tote Gold Cup winner from back in February, this track suits him well, chased home by Sleight Of Hand who has shown plenty of ability in the first three rounds himself. 

Shaun Conway was responsible for the eighth and final heat winner of the night, Harvard Square. He didn't need to improve on his effort on the clock last week to get the job done, once more showing plenty of early pace. Nothing was able to come out of the pack to challenge, so he had no issue in maintaining the gallop to the line.

Brabon with three at Central Park

Dan Brabon was the man to follow at Central Park, with a trio of winners on the card. Two of those were in sprint contests, with the quicker one of the pair being Martindale Lad who won the final race of the night. A natural trapper, he has been an outstanding performer for Brabon, winning 13 of his 32 starts for the kennel, including six open contests.

The huge shock on the night came courtesy of Brabon's Speedy Gojo Fast in another sprint race. Sent off the 40/1 wide outsider, she used her position on the rails to slip up the inside of first bend trouble having caused an issue for one of her rivals when moving off a little.

Catch My Girl was the first open race winner on the night, kicking off the Brabon scorers. She was another to sport the red jacket, showing the best speed to the bend to add to a D2 success gained last Saturday night.

There was a short-price double for Patrick Janssens, with Romeo Tomcat, giving those who were tying to buy money at 1/6 heart palpitations as he needed every inch of the 491m to get his head in front right on the line. 

Romeo Empire made far lighter work of his task over six bends. in control from an early stage, he just kept pouring on the pressure on the front end to stop the clock at 40.05, a very smart time given the track was subsequently rated -60. 

 Another trainer to pick up a pair of winners was Barrie Backhurst. Foxwood Christy was the quickest winner of the night over 491m, absolutely running riot by eight and a half lengths. He had been just 1/17 for this kennel prior to a top grade win earlier on in the month but appears to have found the right formula for success now. 

Deelish Lady has been in good heart in recent weeks, making it three wins from her last four starts, runner-up in the other one when only beaten three-quarters of a length after having to check on the run-in. 

There was a win for Dark Madam and Seamus Cahill over four bends. The dual Category One finalist has had a stop-start career, but when she has been on her game, she is a hugely talented bitch. It was her first race outing since December but showed both the ability and the attitude remain.

Maxine Locke picked up the other winner on the card with Patriot Game. The winner of his only start over six bends in Ireland, he had trialled over 630m for Locke at Monmore back in January, but this was his first try over the distance for the kennel in race action.  

Trio of Grovenor winners at Doncaster for Heaton

Beverly Heaton was the trainer to beat at Doncaster with a hat-trick of winners. They all came over the sprint trip with the times getting quicker with each one. Grovenor Eevee was the fastest of the bunch. Her winning run was stopped at four last time when beaten by her kennelmate Grovenor Mona, but she was straight back on the winning trail here. 

Grovenor Mona was on target again herself, though she caused a bit of a surprise in picking up a win and turning over 1/4 favourite Blow Out. The market leader was quickest to stride but moved off to allow the winner up her inside, Mona then moved off herself at the second bend to put the race to bed.

The treble was kicked off by Grovenor Ozzy who benefited from the best early pace in the contest to get himself to the front and avoid plenty of trouble behind him at the bend. It was his first win for Heaton at the 10th time of asking. 

Sean Parker picked up a pair of winners with both Magical Supreme and Magical Harper adding to wins from last week. The first named put himself into the top five times of the year so far over the 661m distance with a comfortable four-length victory. He is only two races deep into his staying campaign, so he is one to keep on side.

The latter missed the kick and had to work hard to get herself to the front in the shadow of the post, getting up by a short head. It was a third straight win for the September puppy who has one more chance next week to close out her puppy status with a victory.

The Other Chief is a recent addition to the Phil Milner kennel having arrived from Maxine Locke, picking up his first win for the kennel at the third time of asking. He needed all of the 483m distance to get his head in front, nailing Milner's former inmate Keefill Sequoia late on.

Rose Draper picked up a winner with Rockmount Bob who was another to come home by a wide margin after there was plenty of trouble behind him. He now has two wins, five runner-up efforts and a pair of thirds in nine starts since joining the Draper kennel.

Another to make most of the running was Snazzy Bolger for Robert Copping. He made the third round of the Derby after picking up a pair of wins early on for this kennel, but he had not managed to get his head in front since April.

Star Pelaw doubles for Foot, Holloway, Liles and Watson

10 opens at Star Pelaw saw four different trainers pick up a pair of winners each. Fresh off a Sunderland treble on Friday night, the Glenn Foot kennel continued their winning form with Funky Noodle taking the first open on the card. He ran out a seven-length winner and had he not moved off to course the hare from the traps, that would've been considerably more. 

Foot brought his double up with Antigua Kestrel. The former Kevin Hutton-trained performer stepped back up to six bends here which is a trip that is better suited to him at this track than the 435m distance that he won over two starts back. 

There was a return to hurdling at Star Pelaw for track record holder Mickeys Tribute who had not been seen in race action for almost a month. He is now a perfect 11/11 around this venue over the sticks, and with seven weeks until the first round of the Grand National, the chances are that is going to be extended. 

Holloway's double was brought up by Punk Rock Rose who is a new arrival in the kennel, despite being a veteran. She won over two bends at this track last week, quickly doubling up with a bold, front-running display to make it 2/3 since moving to Holloway. 

Another trainer to pick up a double was Jean Liles. The journey north was made worthwhile with a fluent display from Westwood Jack who led home his kennelmate Ivy Hill Maisy for a Liles one-two. He had picked up a success over four bends here a week ago, quickly doubling up over further. 

Trapstyle Spud is a regular top grade sprint winner at Towcester for Liles. He had run well at the track last week, having no issues taking that speed to a shorter and sharper two-bend test but came on plenty for that first look to score at the second time of asking. 

The fourth trainer to grab a double on the card was John Watson. Illnotbedown kicked things off for the kennel with a speedy sprint win, stopping the clock at 14.28. tying the fifth quickest time of the year in the process. 

The final race of the night went to Watson's Here Comes Bob who got the better of a decent battle with Pothole Bob. He had won five of his first six starts at this track for Watson before going off the boil. It will be interesting to see if he can build on this. 

Sunnyside Gurkha picked up another win for Cheryl Ingham, an eighth on the bounce. He didn't get to the front instantly as has so often been the case on this winning run, but he got the better of the front-running Dunquin Rory at the third bend and did enough coming home to see off that rival.

Robert Thompson picked up the other open on the card with Hi Tyson. The veteran was the surprise winner on the card for punters at 8/1, in flying form at a lower level of late, and able to bring that over to an open.

Two Yarmouth opens can't be split on the clock

27.77 was the winning time of both opens at Yarmouth last night with My Name Siddy for Jane Craske just the sharper of the pair on the sectional. He has done connections proud since joining them, winning A3, A2, A1 and a pair of open races from just 11 starts. A repeat of his 5.20 will see him win plenty more at this level. 

John Mullins was response for the other winner with Aayamza Legend.  All four of his prior wins for Mullins had come over six bends so once he had popped out in front on the run to the opening corner, there was only going to be one winner. Avoiding the trouble behind him, he would run out a five and three-quarter length scorer.