THE moving target that was the rained-on ground at Haydock made time analysis there tricky for more than just the Betfair Chase, but there was little mistaking that the two handicap hurdles there rewarded stamina more than speed.

The race won by 135-rated War Lord prompted a 97.5% finishing speed and the one won by the irrepressible Main Fact (now rated 152) came out as 100.4%.

Small fields were the order of the day for the main events last Saturday at Ascot, where Imperial Aura achieved a new personal best of 161 (including sectional upgrade) in winning the Chanelle Pharma 1965 Chase and Song For Someone posted a 156 figure in taking the Coral Hurdle.

It may have looked as if First Flow benefited from an overly strong pace in landing the two-mile handicap chase but sectionals and a 104% finishing speed put the lie to that. His 153 rating is solid, and, a winner of his last four races, there could yet be more to come from him.

There was plenty of interest on the Friday at Ascot, too, not least in the assured manner in which the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle third Chantry House took to fences for the first time. He ended up with only one rival to beat but did that by a wide margin and gets a 136 basic timefigure, upped to 142 on sectionals.

Espoir De Guye (152, chase) and Buzz (146, hurdle) were very useful handicap winners on that Ascot Friday card, the former admittedly well positioned in a rather tactical affair.

Metier managed to run fractionally faster than Buzz, but was carrying less weight, when winning an introductory hurdle earlier on the card and is now one of the highest-rated novice hurdlers on 141. The maiden hurdle won by Danny Kirwan looks better on time than might be expected, with the winner now on 136.

Good season

In what looks like being another good season for novice chasers, it is well worth calling out the victory of the unexposed Phoenix Way at Warwick on the Wednesday. He got up by just a neck from Stratagem but impressed along the way and can surely build on this initial 141 rating.

But the novice chase performance which really put the cat among the pigeons came on an otherwise low-key card at Kempton on Monday, when the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle winner Shishkin took a beginners’ chase by 23 lengths.

He had just two other finishers to beat, the better of which (Mick Pastor) seems highly likely to be of more interest with this experience under his belt. But those describing it as “just a time trial” should at least acknowledge that the overall time recorded by Shishkin compared well with the only other chase on the card.

Shishkin came back in a finishing speed of 106.9%, with splits confirming that the pace had been unexacting mid-race, but can still be credited with a 155 figure after adjustment for sectionals.

You will not find me backing Shishkin at a short price for the Arkle at this stage, but he could hardly have done more in this, and the clock speaks largely in the talented gelding’s favour.