TRAINER David O’Meara and jockey Billy Garritty put on the style with hat-tricks as Redcar’s staged its Gents’ Evening meeting.
O’Meara scored a 2,730-1 treble with Rajapour, Cosmos Raj, and Come On Over, while Garritty weighed in with a 2,205-1 treble with Rajapour, Cosmos Raj and Hurstwood, trained by Peter Niven.
It was a second Redcar win of the year for Rajapour, a course and distance winner in July.
The chestnut gelding was badly hampered and fell at York next time out. However, he recovered to be fifth in a confidence-builder at Hamilton before returning to Redcar to win the Marske Fabrications and Engineering Handicap at 4-1, with Mark Walford’s Sustance a decent second.
Garritty, who had to wait for a gap before pouncing on the winner inside the final furlong, said: "He missed the kick a bit but warmed into the race. He's a grand type of horse."
The O’Meara-Garritty combination made it a double when 20-1 shot Cosmos Raj landed the Bakers Tailoring Handicap by a nose from Tim Easterby's Sweet Kiss. The winning rider said: "He kept finding all the way to the line."
O’Meara, who trains at Upper Helmsley in North Yorkshire, sealed the big-price treble when Come On Over, this time ridden by Sean Dylan Bowen, readily won the Market Cross Jewellers Handicap (Division 2) at 25-1 from Grant Tuer’s Farandaway in second.
Bowen said: "He's been hitting the crossbar so it's nice for him to get his head in front."
Garritty had to wait until the last race, the Celebrate National Racehorse Week Handicap, to complete his hat-trick on Redcar specialist Hurstwood, a 20-1 outsider trained at Malton by Peter Niven.
The nine-year-old grey gelding, who was was winning for the fourth time at Redcar, stormed up the stands rail to win easily from Simon Whitaker’s Ziva's Star.
Niven said: "He works as well as he did five years ago and loves it here. I thought he'd win last time at Thirsk, but he didn't hit the gate too well."
On the night Redcar holds a contest to select the Best-Dressed Man, Mr Cool was a topical winner of the Market Cross Jewellers Handicap (Division 1).
Trained at Middleham by Charlie Johnston and ridden by Connor Beasley, the gelding won by a nose from Spirit of Applause, again denying Tim Easterby by the smallest margin.
Mr Cool’s owner Iain Graham, an electrical engineer from East Kilbride, said: "A horse with that name winning on Gents’ Evening - it was meant to be.”
Beasley had earlier won the Watch Racing TV Now Selling Stakes on Amantha, trained at Malton by Brian Ellison.
The bay filly, running in the colours of Nick Bradley Racing, was a neck too good for Mick and David Easterby’s Hope of Acklam with odds-on favourite Bigalo third. There was no bid for the winner.
John Blackburn must have enjoyed the opening Every Race Live On Racing TV EBF Restricted Novice Stakes because he co-owns both the winner, Dontlookanyfurther, and the runner-up Don’t Stop Movin’.
Dontlookanyfurther, trained at Malton by John and Sean Quinn, and ridden by Jason Hart, outstayed the Michael Dods-trained Don't Stop Moving by three-quarters of a length.
The winner had been badly hampered on his debut when sixth at Thirsk.
Co-owner Ross Harmon, from Hull, said: "John's watching on TV at home – he'll have been delighted to see them both coming up the straight in front. It was very, very exciting. I think John's other horse did us a favour by pushing us against the rail."
Ross, who sells solder as a business, has had lots of horses with John Quinn, notably El Astronaute and Safe Voyage.
Woodleigh, a course and distance winner in May, returned to the winner's enclosure after running on well to beat Julie Camacho’s Fille Embasse in The Bakers Tailoring Handicap (Division 1).
The winner was trained by Roger Fell, ridden by Oisin McSweeney, and owned by the Belt and Braces Racing syndicate.
Syndicate manager Ben Corner said: "He seems to love it here. There aren't many races for him over 1m 2f, so he's been running over a mile. Redcar's a nice galloping track and they keep coming up with a race that suits. Hopefully, we'll be back."
- MAIN PICTURE: Mr Cool is a topical winner on Gents' Evening. Image by Tony Knapton