Mister Meggit makes a lasting impression

It was a mixed weekend as far as the Top 40 Prospects in One Jump Ahead were concerned. The less said the better regarding the runner on Sunday, although a legitimate excuse emerged afterwards. However, twenty four hours earlier, Mister Meggit looked a novice hurdler of considerable potential when readily dismissing eight rivals with consumate ease at Aintree. The Jonjo & A.J.O'Neill trained runner had won two of his three bumpers last term before suffering a nasty injury when stumbling in a Grade 2 contest in the spring. Confidently ridden, the Shantou gelding cruised into contention turning for home and was still on the bridle when hitting the front between the final two flights. Nudged clear for a near five lengths victory, the winning margin could have been trebled had Jonjo jnr wished. The plan is for him to contest another novice under a penalty before a possible tilt at the Grade 1 Challow Novices' Hurdle at Newbury (28th December). A potential clash with another Top 40 entry The New Lion is a mouthwatering prospect.

As discussed, I am continuing to work on the November Update, which will be emailed to clients on Thursday. Whilst working at Aintree on Saturday, I gained some very interesting information regarding a potentially top-class juvenile hurdler. I will include the news in the November Update. Please head to the Publications section of the site to order the OJA Updates.

Following Aintree, I was kindly invited to the Graham Lee charity Ball and Auction at York racecourse and it was a tremendous evening with a who's who of racing in attendance. There were nearly 400 people there, including former champion jockeys John Francome, A.P.McCoy and Brian Hughes. In addition, there were multiple northern trainers and jockeys, plus some southern raiders including James Doyle and Jamie Spencer amongst others. My Racing TV colleague Niall Hannity and his wife Leanne did a wonderful job organising everything and it was a privilege to be asked. Tim Easterby told me to look out for his bumper horse at Newcastle on Friday, while Kevin Ryan passed on the name of the horse he feels could be a top-class sprinter next year. The latter will be included in the Top 40 in the next edition of Ahead On The Flat.