'He's not got many miles on the clock, but he's got a big engine in there and could be a high-class staying hurdler'

It may have been a shock on the day but it was inevitable that Joe Tizzard was going to become a Grade 1-winning trainer.

The breakthrough, courtesy of Elixir De Nutz's 22-1 defeat of Jonbon in the Clarence House Chase, capped a fine season for the Milborne Port operation, even if just falling short of the usual £1 million prize-money target.

Yet that sensational success had an added layer of distinction to it – a first top-level success for the trainer's highly talented teenage nephew Freddie Gingell. Supporting his champion conditional bid will add even more motivation to the Tizzards' family run stable, which is expecting a new member in December.