Market Rasen credits ITV docuseries for increased crowd on Summer Plate day on Saturday

Market Rasen general manager Jack Pryor cited the impact of ITV’s new docuseries Champions: Full Gallop as one of the reasons why the track saw a bumper crowd on its feature raceday on Saturday.

Just over 9,000 were in attendance at the Lincolnshire venue for the seven-race fixture headlined by the £100,000 Summer Plate.

The race was won by the Olly Murphy-trained Sure Touch under Harry Cobden, one of the main characters in the six-part docuseries that follows the story of the 2023-24 jumps season.

Pryor said: "To have over 9,000 racegoers on site to enjoy the day was brilliant and we were delighted to see Sure Touch win the Unibet Summer Plate. 

"With the release of the Champions: Full Gallop documentary on Friday, Harry Cobden proved how Hollywood he is with a great ride. We must thank him for spending time meeting fans and signing autographs, showing how open and welcoming the sport can be."

Sure Touch and Harry Cobden win the Unibet Summer Plate Handicap Chase at Market RasenCredit: Steve Davies

Sean Bowen and Gavin Sheehan, who also feature in Champions: Full Gallop, were involved in Saturday’s fixture and experienced more attention than normal because of the new docuseries.

Meanwhile, dry conditions and warmer temperatures also played a part in the increased crowd compared with 7,597 who attended the meeting 12 months ago.

Pryor said: "The day is the highlight of our summer, where great racing on the track combines with fantastic action off the track, and this year marked our richest raceday ever, with £250,000 on offer.

"A big thank you, as always, to my team. The site looked fantastic, the track was in great condition, and we were rewarded with competitive racing and a good day all round."

Read these next:

'Plenty of people have said they enjoyed it' - jump jockeys at Market Rasen praise first episode of Champions: Full Gallop 

'He's absolutely brilliant' - Harry Cobden lives up to Hollywood tag with starring role on Sure Touch in Summer Plate 

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