'The jumps is hotting up, it's good to pop one in' - boost for Ben Pauling as long trip north pays off

Ben Pauling's 550-mile round trip was rewarded when I'm Ravenous got off the mark narrowly to give the Cheltenham trainer a confidence boost ahead of the core jumps season.

Pauling broke the £1 million mark for prize-money for the first time last season, helped by Shakem Up'arry winning at the Cheltenham Festival, but success for I'm Ravenous in the 2m4f maiden hurdle ended a 45-day wait for a winner.

The six-year-old boasted some solid form over hurdles without winning last season and put a disappointing run when beaten at 4-11 at Worcester last time behind him. Success for the ex-pointer sets up a future over fences.

"We've been expecting him to do that for a little while now," the trainer said. "He was disappointing at Worcester but I was delighted by how he jumped and travelled. It was his first time over two and a half [miles] and I thought we might get collared, but he dug deep and finished well, which is good to see.

"Sedgefield is a long way, but it's trying to find the right place for the horse to get off the mark. The season is hotting up and you'd think a rating of 113 would be good enough to win a maiden hurdle, but it's getting more and more competitive at this time of year. We'll go chasing with him now.

"With the rain around it does feel like the start of the season, so it's good to pop one in."

Read more: 

Hopewell Rock maintains unbeaten record to tee up exciting three-year-old season 

'I don’t want to do too much too early' - Harry Cobden to return to the saddle for one ride at Warwick on Thursday 

Leading Arkle fancy Firefox set to spearhead 'exciting' team of novice chasers for Gordon Elliott 

Looking for free bets? Racing Post have got the best offers, all in one place. Visit racingpost.com/freebets to find out more.