'He has a bit of class about him' - well-bred Bluegrass kicks off double for Stuart Edmunds
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Stuart Edmunds may have been at Cheltenham but he loves nothing more than a winner at the Norfolk track and managed not one but two winners beginning with Bluegrass in the 2m maiden hurdle.
Three years after opening his account on the Flat for Aidan O'Brien, Bluegrass repeated the feat over jumps when striking at odds-on under Charlie Hammond.
The well-bred son of Galileo is from a sprint family and was always going to be suited by a sharp two miles, and backed up his recent second to subsequent Imperial Cup third Jipcot with a seven-length success over Rumoursareflying.
Speaking from the festival, Edmunds said: "Bluegrass has a bit of class about him but I don't know if the track really suited him. It's great that he's got his head in front and he was rated high enough to be competitive in a maiden hurdle. We'll go back handicapping after that."
Edmunds and Hammond doubled up in similarly impressive fashion when Birdhouse flew home in the 2m mares' handicap hurdle.
Hughes strikes
Brian Hughes spent one day at the Cheltenham Festival on Thursday but was back on his usual beat a day later when Ballylinch made virtually all to land the 3m novice handicap chase.
The champion jockey, who was at Sedgefield and Huntingdon for the first two days of the festival, teamed up with Micky Hammond for a dominant six-and-a-half-length success over fellow prominent runner Elleon.
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