Polly in Express success

Polly Gundry became only the third woman to win a race over the Grand National fences as she landed the Martell Fox Hunters` Chase on the Paul Nicholls-trained Torduff Express.

She emulated Caroline Beasley in the Fox Hunters` on Eliogarty in 1986, as her mount jumped the unique obstacles with style, repelled a brief challenge from Gunner Welburn two-out and came home a 13-length winner.

In between those came Anthea Farrell, who rode J-J-Henry to success in the John Hughes Memorial Trophy Chase Handicap in 1991.

Miss Gundry, 26, is a former champion lady point-to-point rider and won a timber race in America last weekend.

But she had no doubt this victory, on her first ride in the race, was the highlight of her riding career.

'It really went copybook,' she reflected. 'It was like being a field marshal rather than one of the field in a hunting field.

'He never put a foot wrong.

'Peter Daresbury warned me there would be more of a drop than you think there would be but I slipped my reins and he never put his nose down.

'This is by a long way my biggest moment in the sport. I thought I couldn`t win. I won a novice hunter chase on the Mildmay course here and whoever goes to a course twice and wins?'

Jonjo O`Neill started the week in style reaching a century of winners in a season for the first time on Monday and with a winner at Ludlow yesterday too, kept up the good work with a sparkling 577-1 double with Sudden Shock and Quazar.

Sudden Shock certainly lived up to his name as he was a 33-1 chance and the lesser fancied of O`Neill`s two runners and led early on he led again at the fifth and made the rest staying on gamely over the last two flights for John Kavanagh to hold off Iris Royal by half a length with Cheltenham Festival winner Freetown four lengths away in third.

His stable companion Lorenzio finished only seventh and O`Neill said with a smile: 'It would have been better if they had finished first and second!

'Sudden Shock is a nice horse but his wind had always been a problem and he has had an operation for it. I don`t think there is a handicap at Sandown for him but he may go to Punchestown.'

And Quazar could be bound for Punchestown too after a battling success under a strong ride from Tony Dobbin, who is now only one short of his first century, in the Martell XO Anniversary 4-Y-0 Hurdle.

The Jackdaws Castle trainer went on: 'He was bought for only 8,000gns at the Doncaster Breeze Up Sales by David Carr who lives near there and I did not think when he won at Bangor-On-Dee in August that he would be winning at Aintree.

'But he is a tough little horse who jumps and stays and he has won on all sorts of ground, though I think better ground suits him more than heavier conditions.'

He added: 'He ran well at Cheltenham, he did not get the run of the race really and we will certainly think about taking him to Punchestown now - I put him in the 4-Y-O hurdle there this morning.'

And owner Carr recalled: 'My first horse Zsarabak won the same race last season which Quazar won this season at Bangor this season - but I have had five heart attacks in between that and this.'